
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



Chap..— Copyright No,. 

ShelUCA; 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



THE MONTH OF 
OUR LADY. 



UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF 

Our "Blessed Lady of Victory. 

FROM THE ITALIAN OF 

REV. AUGUSTINE FERRAN, 

BY 

Rev. John F. Mullany, LL.D. 




New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: 
BENZIGER BRB^HERfe. 

Print67-s to the Holy A_posto}iQQQv 



etat 



IRibfl ©b. 

Fr. D. Reuter, M.C., 

Censo?' Defiiitatus. 

Syracuse, X. Y., 

February ai, 1898. 



Imprimatur, 

* MICHAEL AUGUSTINE, 

Archbishop of New York, 

New York, March 3, 1898. 



Tub Li*jury 
of Congress 

WASHINGTON 



Copyright, 1898, by Benziger Brothers. 



PREFflCE. 



JfjEVOTION to our Blessed Lao\ ^as 
been so long established among the 
faithful and is so universally known and 
practised, that any explanation on my 
part is unnecessary and superfluous. The 
compiler and translator has been induced 
to think that he would render a service to 
religion, and at the same time pay a 
tribute of devotion to the Mother of 
God, by presenting this old work in a 
new English dress. 

That this little book may promote and 
foster among the faithful deep and heart- 
felt devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, 
is the prayer of 

THE TRANSLATOR. 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE 



First Day. — Motives of Devotion to 

Our Blessed Lady 8 

Second Day. — The Honor which 

should be paid to the Blessed Virgin 

Mary • 16 

Third Day. — Duty of Imitating the 

Blessed Virgin 24 

Fourth Day. — The Holy Name of 

Mary 34 

Fifth Day. — Mary, the Mother of 

God 42 

Sixth Day. — Mary, Our Mother . . 50 
Seventh Day. — Mary, Our Queen . 58 
Eighth Day. — Mary, Queen of 

Mercy 67 

Ninth Day. — Mary, Queen of Angels 77 
Tenth Day. — Mary, Queen of all 

Saints 89 

Eleventh Day. — Mary's Co-opera- 
tion in our Redemption 99 

Twelfth Day. — Love which we owe 

Our Lady 1 1 1 

Thirteenth Day.— Mary, Mother of 

Grace 123 

Fourteenth Day. — Virginity of 

Mary 136 

Fifteenth Day. — Mary, Mother of 

Chastity 148 

Sixteenth Day. — Holiness of Mary 160 



6 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE 

Seventeenth Day. — Sorrows of Our 

Lady 172 

Eighteenth Day. — Mary, Mother of 

Sinners. 182 

Nineteenth Day. — Goodness of 

Mary 194 

Twentieth Day.— Mary, Mother of 

Humility 205 

Twenty-first Day. — Power of Our 

Lady 216 

Twenty - second Day. — Mary, 

Mother of Compassion 228 

Twenty-third Day. — Patronage of 

Our Lady 239 

Twenty-fourth Day. — Protection 

of Mary 250 

Twenty-fifth Day. — Mary, Our 

Hope 259 

Twenty-sixth Day. — Mary, Our 

Guide to Heaven 271 

Twenty - seventh Day. — Mary, 

Health of the Weak 280 

Twenty-eighth Day. — Mary, Help 

of Christians 289 

Twenty-ninth Day. — Mary, Con- 
soler of the Afflicted 298 

Thirtieth Day. — Devotion to the 

Immaculate Heart of Mary . . . 306 
Thirty-first Day. — Perseverance 

in the Love of Our Lady .... 315 
Prayers in Honor of Mary . . 325 
Litany of the Blessed Virgin . 335 
Litany of Our Lady of Victory 338 



MEDITATIONS 

FOR , THE 

MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



Mother of grace, O Mary blest ! 

To thee, sweet fount of love, we fly : 
Shield us through life, and take us hence 

To thy dear bosom when we die. 



FIRST DAY. 



WHY WE SHOULD PRACTISE DEVOTION TO 
THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 

"Her spirit is sweeter than honey, and her 
heritage than the honey-comb. They that eat 
her shall yet be hungry, and they that drink her 
shall still thirst. Whoso hearkeneth to her shall 
not be confounded, and they that work by her 
shall not sin." 

£TS a woman was instrumental in the 
" fall of man, it was the will of God 
that a woman should co-operate in man's 
redemption. During forty centuries the 
Lord, in the language of Isaias, observed 
attentively the illustrious women who 
from time to time appeared, in order to 
choose her who should be most worthy 
of himself and best adapted to the plan 
of the redemption of man. Sara pre- 
sented herself in the splendor of her 
wealth, Rebecca in the lustre of her 
beauty, and Rachel in the elegance of her 
grace; but their wealth, beauty, and grace 
had no attractions for the Most High. 
Ruth, Jahel and Judith, Abigail and Es- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



9 



ther, appeared in succession ; but none 
of these was chosen. They were all fig- 
ures of that exalted maiden in whom the 
virtues and worth of each and all of them 
were to be united. Who then will be 
that illustrious woman foretold by the 
prophets, longed for by the patriarchs, 
foreshown from the earliest days in sym- 
bols and figures so numerous and so var- 
ious, and promised by the Almighty from 
the beginning? Lovely daughter of 
Joachim and Anne, thou art the chosen 
one ! Although many maidens have ar- 
rayed themselves in garments of glory, 
Mary far surpasses them in abundance of 
merit and fulness and richness of reward. 
Mary, as well in the order of nature as in 
the order of grace and glory, far excels 
all women, all just souls, and even all 
angelic beings united ; for she alone at- 
tracted the especial preference of Al- 
mighty God, and was selected by him to 
be the mother of his Son, and thus to co- 
operate in our redemption. Wishing to 
consecrate to the honor of Our Lady the 
month of May, we shall commence our 
exercises of piety by considering the 
principal motives which urge us, as 
Christians, to pay to her the tribute of 
our devotion. The first is because 
amongst all created beings she is adorned 



10 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



with transcendent sanctity, the second 
because she. is the mother of God and 
also our mother. 



I. 

It being our duty to love God principally 
because he contains essentially in himself 
every perfection, and it being likewise our 
duty to praise God in his saints, it be- 
comes our duty to be especially devoted 
to Mary ; because amongst all the crea- 
tures of God she is the most pure, the 
most holy, the most perfect. As such we 
discover her in the designs of the Lord ; 
and the church of God's infallible truth 
applies to this great mother in a mystic 
sense whatever the Scripture says of the 
divine Wisdom. Hence Mary is made to 
say of herself: — I came out of the mouth 
of the Most High, the first born before all 
creatures (Eccl. xxiv. 5). The Lord 
possessed me in the beginning of his 
ways, before he made anything from the 
beginning. I was set up from eternity, 
and of old before the earth was made. 
The depths were not as yet, and I was al- 
ready conceived ; neither had the foun- 
tains of water as yet sprung out. . .When 
he prepared the heavens, I was present; 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. \\ 

when with a certain law and compass he 
enclosed the depths, I was with him form- 
ing all things {Prov. viii. 22). I was ex- 
alted like a cedar in Libanus, and as a 
cypress tree on Mount Sion. I was ex- 
alted like a palm tree in Cades, and as a 
rose plant in Jericho {EccL xxiv. 17). 

Mary is thus celebrated by the spouse of 
the Canticles : Thou art all fair, O my love ; 
and there is not a spot in thee. Thou 
comest forth as the morning rising, fair 
as the moon, bright as the sun {Cant. 
iv. 7). It is not surprising, therefore, 
that the angel of God, when in the ful- 
ness of time he visited Mary as a mes- 
senger from the Most High, exclaimed 
on beholding her, — Hail, full of grace ; 
the Lord is with thee : blessed art thou 
among women {Luke i. 28). 

In like manner, the Fathers of the 
Church proclaimed Mary the most holy 
and most lovely creature that ever 
issued from the hands of Him that is 
mighty. The eternal God, says St. 
Bernardine, created in time his holy 
mother, such as he had chosen her from 
eternity, adorning her with all the gifts 
of nature and grace, which became the 
grandeur of his majesty. With the ex- 
ception of Christ, and with the exception 
also of his most blessed mother, says 



12 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



St. Cyril, we were all born in sin. Mary 
was an object of wonder to angels and to 
men, says Albertus Magnus, because all 
that human nature, all that a mere crea- 
ture is capable of being endowed with, was 
found in Mary. What is more holy, says 
St. Thomas, than Mary? Neither Proph- 
ets, nor Apostles, nor Martyrs, nor Pa- 
triarchs, nor Thrones, nor Dominations, 
nor Cherubim, nor Seraphim. Amongst all 
created beings, visible and invisible, noth- 
ing greater or more excellent than she 
can be found. According to Suarez, Mary 
surpasses in sanctity, not only every 
saint and every angel individually con- 
sidered, but all saints and all angels 
united. Mary, therefore, is, in the words 
of the Church, Queen of all saints, be- 
cause in holiness and perfection she far 
excels them. 



II. 

If we owe honor to Mary as the most 
holy of all creatures, what honor do we 
not owe to her as the mother of God ? Be- 
hold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a 
son, says Isaias (vii. 14). This virgin is 
Mary, this son of Mary is the Son of 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 13 



God. The angel Gabriel sent from God, 
said : Fear not, Mary; for thou hast found 
grace with God. Behold, thou shalt con- 
ceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a 
son ; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. 
He shall be great, and shall be called the 
son of the Most High {Luke iv. 30). 

In the motherhood of the Holy Virgin 
are founded her glories ; and the Church 
delights to address her by all those titles 
which correspond to so great a dignity. 
Nothing can be of so great honor to the 
creature as to be the mother of the Crea- 
tor. To have given to the light of the 
world the divine wisdom, that was from 
the beginning with God, and in the be- 
ginning was God; by whom all things 
were made, and without whom was made 
nothing that was made (Jokni), is un- 
doubtedly the loftiest dignity that the 
mind is capable of conceiving in a mere 
denture. The blessed Virgin may be con- 
sic ered as the gate and dwelling place of 
the divine wisdom that cries aloud: — 
Blessed is the man that heareth me, and 
that watcheth daily at my gate, and wait- 
eth at the posts of my &ooxs(Prov. viii. 34). 
She is the gate of wisdom, because 
through her, and with a body taken from 
her, the Son of God entered into the world 
for our salvation. She is the dwelling place 



14 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



of wisdom; because the divine wisdom, 
that is discovered in others by a com- 
munication of light, is found in Mary in an 
especial manner by the abode which God 
made man took up in her bosom. We may 
therefore approach the divine wisdom by 
the same way in which he condescended 
to come to us. We may also learn how to re- 
ceive the precepts and observe the coun- 
sels of divine wisdom from the example of 
her who kept all these things in her heart, 
and to whom the holy Elizabeth said, by 
inspiration of the spirit of God, — Blessed 
art thou that hast believed; because those 
things shall be accomplished that were 
spoken to thee by the Lord {Luke i. 45). 

It was the intention of Almighty God 
that Mary, in becoming the mother of 
Christ, should become also our mother. 
And this is the third title by which she 
challenges our respect and honor. Mary, 
says William the Abbot. has one only Son; 
still she is the mother of many. By being 
mother of the head, she is the mother of 
many members. Hence she is called 
Mother of all Christians, and receives 
from them the honor which is due to such 
a mother. Mary is our mother, because 
she has restored to us the life of grace. of 
which we were deprived by our first 
mother. As Eve, says Richard of St. Law- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 15 



rence, was called the mother of the living, 
from the natural life which she gave to 
men, with greater reason is Mary called 
the mother of all the living, from the life 
of grace which men receive only through 
her agency. Mary is, moreover, our 
mother, because she is the mother of the 
Son of God, who deigned to call us his 
brothers. Let us all then rejoice, says 
St. Bonaventure; let us all cry aloud with 
exultation: —Blessed be the Brother 
through whom Mary is our mother; and 
blessed be the mother through whom 
Christ is our brother. Mary is our mother 
because she was given to us as a mother 
by our divine Redeemer, and adopted us 
as her children in the person of St. John. 
When Jesus, agonizing on the cross, 
saw his mother and the disciple standing, 
whom he loved, he saith to his mother: 
Woman, behold thy son. After that he 
saith to his disciple: Behold thy mother. 
And from that hour the disciple took 
her to his own (John xix. 21). From what 
has been said, we cannot but conclude 
that we are bound to love and honor 
Mary in an especial manner, both be- 
cause she is the most pure and holy of 
all creatures, and because, whilst she is 
truly the mother of God made man, she is 
also our own most loving mother. 



16 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ASPIRATION. 

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for 
us sinners. 

PRACTICE. 

Be careful to utter no word that may 
be displeasing to your heavenly Mother. 

LITANY. 

Read a chapter of the Glories of Mary. 



SECOND DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR THE BLESSED 
VIRGIN MARY. 

" Thou art the glory of Jerusalem; thou art 
the joy of Israel; thou art the honor of our peo- 
ple." Judith xv. 10. 

TUDITH, having returned from the As- 
Syrian camp, presented herself to the 
people of Bethulia and thus addressed 
them: Praise ye the Lord, our God, who 
hath not forsaken them that hope in him. 
And by me, his handmaid, he hath ful- 
filled his mercy, which he promised to 
the house of Israel: and he hath killed 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



17 



the enemy of his people by my hand this 
night {Judith xiii. 17, 18). 

Who does not perceive in Judith vic- 
torious over Holofernes our great 
mother Mary, through whom the world 
was delivered from the slavery of sin ? 
In the public homage paid to Judith by 
the people of Bethulia, who does not dis- 
cover the homage which by Christians 
should be paid to Mary? The Church, 
revering her as the most lovely, the most 
holy, and most noble of all mere crea- 
tures, acknowledging her as the mother 
of God and the mother of all Christians, 
pronounces separation from the true fold 
against any one who should attempt to 
detract from the honor due to her, and to 
tarnish her glory (Council of Ephesus). 
Having considered the principal motives 
which should influence us to be devout to 
Mary, let us now consider in what manner 
we ought to love her ; and convince our- 
selves that the honor which we should 
tribute to Mary consists in the first place 
in the feelings of the heart; and in the sec- 
ond, in the external manifestation of these 
feelings. 

I. 

The true worship of God commences 
in the understanding, and is completed 



13 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



in the heart. It is the part of the 
understanding to make us know and ad- 
mire him, and of the heart to love and 
obey him ; so that, from a just knowledge 
of God, true love for him flows. From 
this principle it follows, that devotion to 
the great mother of God must be estab- 
lished in the heart in order to prove sin- 
cere and advantageous. Almighty God 
says : " My son, give me thy heart" (Prov. 
xxv. 26), showing that he requires us to 
love him with the heart, and that he de- 
sires nothing so much as the offering of 
the heart. Hence, to be truly devout to 
Mary, we must be devout to her with the 
whole heart. Among the principal af- 
fections of the heart are three : Love, 
sympathetic pleasure, and reverence. 
The affection of love is a feeling of 
the soul turned towards an object that 
attracts us. It has its origin in the es- 
teem in which we hold the object and the 
worth which we discover in it. Who 
then will refuse to love Mary ? Was not 
she alone, amongst all creatures, unsul- 
lied by sin in her conception ? And did 
she not pass her whole life without blem- 
ish in the sight of God ? Is she not the 
mother of God, and, as his mother, en- 
throned in Heaven Queen of Saints and of 
Angels? And does she not, with a 



THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 19 

mother's heart, earnestly desire the hap- 
piness of all her children on earth ? Who. 
therefore, can withhold from Mary the 
warmest and most tender feeling of the 
soul : deep, unfeigned, heartfelt love? 

To find pleasure in the grace and 
favors bestowed upon Mary, belongs to 
the affection of sympathetic pleasure. 
To reflect that Mary was chosen by God,, 
and elevated to the most sublime dig- 
nity of being his mother ; that she was 
adorned with the most exalted graces r 
and enriched with the rarest gifts ; that 
in Heaven her glory is inferior to that 
only of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; 
that for forty centuries the Prophets of 
the Lord had their eyes fixed upon her 
and foreshowed her by symbols and fig- 
ures without number ; that she was the 
desire of the Patriarchs and of the souls 
of all the just deceased before Christ ; — 
to reflect upon all this, and to experience- 
delight in the reflection, is to honor Mary 
and to furnish a great proof of love. 
Thus a friend rejoices in the welfare and 
prosperity of a friend. 

This homage of sympathetic pleasure 
gives honor to the Blessed Virgin, and is 
so pleasing to her that she invites us 
with the Church to rejoice with her, be- 
cause she pleased the Most High, and at 



20 



THE MONTH OF OCR LAB}'. 



the appointed time became the mother 
of God made man. For this reason both 
the Church militant and the Church 
triumphant feel great complacency in the 
dignity and glory of Mary. St. Bona ven- 
ture exclaims: O Holy Virgin, in whose 
glory all the choirs of Saints exult and re- 
joice ! The Church chants with jubila- 
tion — Let us all rejoice, celebrating a fes- 
tive day in honor of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary, whose assumption is a source of 
joy to the Angels of God. On this day the 
Blessed Virgin ascended to Heaven : re- 
joice, because with Christ she reigns for- 
ever. 

But of what value would be our love 
for Mary and our rejoicing with her, if to 
love and pleasure we did not add the 
feeling of reverence ? The degree of rev- 
erence, of humble respect due to a per- 
son, is determined by that person's exal- 
tation, dignity and greatness. Was not 
Mary saluted by an Angel as full of grace, 
and as having the Lord with her (Lukei. 
28) ? Was it not announced to her that 
she was to become the mother of the 
Most High, without blemish to her vir- 
ginal purity? Did not God become in 
some measure dependent on Mary, by be- 
coming her Son ? He was subject to 
them (to Mary and Joseph), says St. Luke. 



THE MON TH OF OUR LADY. 21 

Mary, by being made tne motner of God, 
became our mother and the Queen of 
Heaven and Earth. Tne mother of the 
Lord is the most dignified of all mothers. 
A greater than she is, God himself can- 
not form. A greater world than this 
world of ours, greater heavens, God can 
make ; but a greater mother than the 
mother of God, God himself cannot pro- 
duce. And why? Because, according to 
St. Thomas Aquinas. Mary, by becoming 
the mother of God. approached the con- 
fines of Divinity, and by being the mother 
of Him who alone is omnipotent and in- 
finite, she also acquired a kind of in- 
finity. Mary, says Peter Damian, is so per- 
fect a worti, that there is naught above 
her but God himself. Let every creature 
be s;lent and tremble, says the same St. 
Peter., and let no one dare to lift his eyes 
to the immensity of so great dignity, — So 
great, subjoins St. Bernard, that only 
God can comprehend it. We must there- 
fore conclude that it is our duty to rever- 
ence Mary with the most profound sen- 
timents of respect and veneration, 

II. 

Although God alone is in himself de- 
serving of oui invocations and our pray- 



22 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ers, and him alone we acknowledge as the 
bestower of every good gift, and the foun- 
tain from which every blessing flows, still 
tile very love which we cherish for God 
obliges us to have recourse to Mary by 
prayer and invocation. The Scriptures 
teach us that it is our interest to invoke 
the aid of the Saints who are reigning in 
heaven with Christ. We learn from the 
prophet Zacharias that the Angel of the 
Lord prayed for Jerusalem and the cities 
of Juda {Zach. i. 12) ; from the second 
book of Machabees (xv. 14), that Onias 
and jeremias after their death prayed 
much for the people and for all the holy 
city ; in the Apocalypse (v. 8), the four 
and twenty ancients offer to the Lamb 
the prayers of the Saints. When impious 
men, such as Eunomius, Vigilantius, the 
Iconoclasts, and others, attempted to dis- 
turb the peace of the Christian family by 
refusing to the Saints the honors which 
belong to them, the Fathers by their 
writings and discourses, and the Church 
by her anathemas, assembled and con- 
demned the sin of heresy. May the martyrs 
pray for us, says the Council of Chalcedon. 
Let us do all things in the fear of God, 
expecting also the intercession of our 
spotless Lady, the Holy Virgin Mary, and 
of the holy Angels, and of all the Saints. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 23 

These are the sentiments of the second 
Council of Nice and of the Council of 
Ephesus. No one, exclaims St. Ger- 
manus, obtains salvation unless through 
thee, O most holy Virgin ! No one is de- 
livered from evil unless through thy in- 
tercession, O purest of the pure ! To no 
one is imparted a gift of grace, unless 
through thy mediation, O most chaste of 
the daughters of Eve ! Who then can 
hesitate to invoke the most holy name of 
Mary? Who will not join in the saluta- 
tion of the angel : Hail, full of grace ? 
Who will not say to her with deepest ven- 
eration : Holy Mary, Mother of God ? 
Who will not address her in the words of 
the Church of truth : Hail, holy Queen, 
Mother of Mercy? He who, says a Saint, 
apostrophizing Mary, he who shall assert 
of thee, O Holy Virgin, every thing that 
is illustrious and glorious, will never de- 
part from the truth ; and yet, language 
will not be able to express the greatness 
of thy dignity. We may then affirm with 
St. Germanus that, as respiration is a cer- 
tain sign of bodily life, so the assiduous 
invocation of the sacred name of the 
Blessed Virgin is not only a sign of spirit- 
ual life, but a sure means of procuring 
choicest spiritual favors. It is our inter- 
est, therefore, to invoke the name and im- 



'24 



THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 



plore the assistance of Mary ; and sincere 
love for her should cause us to send forth 
our supplications from a heart throbbing 
with feelings of reverence, pleasure, 
complacency, praise, and gratitude. 

ASPIRATION. 

Teach me to praise thee, most Holy Vir- 
gin. 

PRACTICE. 

Endeavor to excite devotion to Mary in 
the hearts of others. 

LITANY. 

Read a chapter of Father Fader's Foot of 
the Cross. 

THIRD DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD IMITATE THE BLESSED 
VIRGIN MARY. 

"She is the unspotted Mirror of God's Majesty, 
and the image of his goodness." IVisd. vii. 26. 

QMOXGST the mystic titles which the 
" Church applies to Mar}-, she calls her 
the Mirror of Justice ; that is. according 
to the Fathers, the Mirror of all virtues. 
God, and none but God, is the Sun of 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 25 

Justice [Malach. iv. 2) ; but since Mary 
is adorned with gifts of grace far more 
abundantly than all other creatures, and 
since the reflection of hervirtues reaches 
us, we very appropriately style her Mir- 
ror of Justice. God, says St. Thomas, 
formed a mirror, of all mirrors the bright- 
est, the purity of which is so great that in 
vain would w T e seek one moie pure with- 
out mounting to God himself. This Mirror 
is the most glorious Virgin whom, ac- 
cording to St. Bernard, God made the 
lively image of his own goodness. Let 
us then direct our view to this Mir- 
ror, and behold in it how w r e ought to 
practise obedience, humility and purity. 
All will see in it the example of Mary 
teaching them the life of holiness that 
will render secure the attainment of eter- 
nal bliss. Let us now consider that the 
interior honor which we owe to Mary, 
must seek its perfection in the imitation 
of her virtues and the avoidance of sin. 

I. 

Our Divine Redeemer says in the Gos- 
pel of St. Matthew (vii. 15. 21): Beware of 
false prophets, who come to you in the 
clothing of sheep, but inwardly they are 
ravenous wolves. By their fruits you shall 
know them. Do men gather grapes of 



26 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

thorns, or figs of thistles ? Even so every 
good tree yieldeth good fruit, and the bad 
tree yieldeth bad fruit. A good tree cannot 
yield bad fruit ; neither can a bad tree 
yield good fruit. Wherefore by their 
fruits you shall know them. Not every 
one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall 
enter into the kingdom of heaven : but 
he that doeth the will of my Father, who 
is in heaven, he shall enter into the king- 
dom of heaven. This language of Christ 
attentively considered, shows us clearly 
what we should do. These works have 
their source in the heart and we are 
taught that since we are bound to love 
God with our whole heart, we must mani- 
fest this love by the purity of our actions. 

In like manner, the love which Mary's 
merits demand of us, can never be true 
and sincere, unless our faith in her is 
shown by our good deeds. Without these 
our devotion would be vain and illusory. 
Faith, says the Apostle St. James, faith 
without works is dead. No homage there- 
fore is so worthy of the Saints as the im- 
itation of their virtues. If we wish to en- 
joy the society of the Saints, says St. Aug- 
ustine, let us imitate them; for that we 
may be certain of their intercession in our 
behalf, it is necessarv that they recognize 
in us something of their own virtues. If we 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 27 

wish, consequently, our souls to be ani- 
mated with genuine piety towards the 
most pure Virgin ; if we wish to experi- 
ence her patronage in all our necessities ; 
if we wish to enjoy her company in the 
region of the Blessed, we must apply our- 
selves to the study of her virtues, and 
exert ourselves to form our life in imita- 
tion of hers. It is well to reserve our 
heart for Mary, and to direct towards her 
our affections ; it is well to rejoice in the 
favors which she has received and in the 
dignity to which she has been elevated ; 
it is well to bow with reverence before 
her and invoke assiduously her illustrious 
name ; but unless we employ ourselves 
in the imitation of her virtues, fruit- 
less will be our devotion. To praise 
Mary, says St. Augustine, without striving 
to imitate her example, would be nothing 
but the merest adulation. 

The Holy Virgin is the most pure mir- 
ror of all virtues : in her we can discover 
what we ought to avoid, and what we 
ought to pursue. "Mary," says St. Greg- 
ory, "is the support of believers, the per- 
fect example of pious souls." "Such was 
Mary," says St. Ambrose, "that her life is 
a rule for all Christians ; from her all 
may learn what they should correct, what 
they should avoid, what they should per- 



28 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



form. The Divine Spouse finds far greater 
pleasure in devout imitation, than in idle 
praise : and indeed the true praise of the 
heart is the imitation of the example." 
St. Jerome says: "Love Mary whom you 
honor, honor Mary whom you love. Then 
5'ou truly honor and love her, if you study 
to imitate her life of love." From her lips 
the Church causes to issue the words of 
the divine wisdom. "Now therefore, 
ye children, hear me : Blessed are they 
that keep my ways. Hear instruction, 
and be wise, and refuse it not. Blessed 
is the man that heareth me, and that 
watcheth daily at my gates, and waiteth 
at the posts of my doors. He that find- 
eth me shall find life, and shall have sal- 
vation from the Lord" ( Wisd. viii. 32-35). 

We must now consider how and when 
especially we ought to imitate Mary. If you 
are assaulted by a temptation against pur- 
ity, lift your eyes to the image of Mary, 
and the thought cannot fail to recur to 
you that the Virgin of Virgins held vir- 
ginity in such esteem, that she would 
have renounced the dignity of Mother of 
God offered to her by the messenger of 
the Lord, rather than consent to any 
blemish of her virginal purity. If you 
are assailed by discouragement, in adver- 
sity, turn to the image of Mary, and re- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 29 



calling to mind that this great Queen of 
Martyrs stood, with perfect resignation 
and submission to the will of God, at the 
foot of the cross, on which her only Son 
was dying in agony, you must feel encour- 
aged to imitate her example. If you are 
tempted against faith or grow weak in the 
midst of the persecutions and disappoint- 
ments of this life, lift your eyes to the im- 
age of Mary, and you will gain vigor from 
the reflection that this Queen of Apostles, 
by her presence, her word, and her ad- 
mirable life, animated the Apostles and 
first believers in Christ, whilst for fidel- 
ity to Him they were subjected without 
intermission to every species of perse- 
cution. Whatever may be your trials, 
whencesoever may arise the agitation of 
your soul, look at the image of Mary, 
and learn from her the virtues that will 
strengthen you in trial, that will soothe 
into order and calmness the troubled 
waters of your spirit. Thus will you 
practise the imitation of Mary. 

Mary is very properly called, a mirror 
without spot; because, as by means of 
the mirror the blemishes of the counte- 
nance and the disorder of the garments 
are discovered and removed, so, by ob- 
serving attentively the Holy Virgin, we 
learn how to frame our conduct and reg- 



30 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ulate all the actions of life. The Re- 
deemer said to those Jews that believed 
in him : If you continue in my word, you 
shall be my disciples indeed {John viii. 
31). If you be the children of Abraham, 
do the works of Abraham (viii. 39). We 
therefore being children of Mary, should 
imitate her chastity, her generosity, 
her humility, her benignity, her meek- 
ness, and her mercy. By so doing we 
shall secure for ourselves a rich reward, 
since Mary says to those who imitate her: 
He that shall find me shall find life, and 
shall have salvation from the Lord (Prov. 
viii. 35). That is, he who hearkens to 
Mary and imitates her example shall have 
bestowed upon him in this life treasures 
of graces, and in the life to come im- 
mortal glory. 

II. 

Most pleasing to Mary is the study of 
her devout servants to imitate her vir- 
tues, and she derives honor from their 
zealous exertions ; but one homage she 
demands of them with especial earnest- 
ness — an unceasing anxiety to shun sin. 
O, how great an evil is mortal sin ! It is 
the only true evil ; it is sovereign evil, 
unmingled, absolute evil. In committing 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 31 



mortal sin, a covenant is made with hell 
(Is. xxviii. 15); the spirit of Satan against 
God is shared in ; God is disobeyed, is 
despised, is rebelled against, is insulted ; 
and Christ is crucified anew. By sin the 
commandments of Christ are treated 
with scorn ; his blood is trampled under 
foot; his favors, his merits, his graces, 
his rewards, all the blessings of God, are 
contemptuously cast away, and men 
think unjustly, in their folly, that God 
shall be like to themselves (Ps. xix. 20). 
The sinner forfeits eternal salvation, 
sacrifices to his passions endless happi- 
ness, draws down upon himself the 
thunderbolts of God's anger, and closes 
his earthly career by rushing headlong 
into the flames of everlasting perdition. If 
to God the wicked and his wickedness 
are hateful alike (Wisd. xiv. 9), it follows 
that Mary must detest sin, and that she 
can never grant her protection to those 
who are hateful to God and declared ene- 
mies of her Son. 

If we wish, therefore, to do honor to 
Mary, we must be assiduous in our anx- 
iety to avoid sin. It is our duty to give 
praise to Mary; but since praise is not 
seemly in the mouth of a sinner (Eccl. xv. 
9), nor acceptable to the Almighty, in 
such praise Marv can never rind compla- 



32 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



cency. We should love Mary in sincer- 
ity of heart; but if the heart is made the 
dwelling place of sin and sinful affections, 
how can our love for Mary be sincere? 
Mary is the Mother of God, the Queen 
of heaven and earth, the Treasurer of all 
heavenly graces, the Advocate of sinners. 
We must, therefore, if we value the 
favor of Heaven, offer to her our sup- 
plications and our prayers. But, he that 
turneth away his ears from hearing the 
law, his prayer shall be an abomination 
(Prov. xxviii.9), therefore, that our prayers 
may meet with favor in the sight of Mary, 
they must proceed from a repentant heart, 
at the command of a will firmly resolved 
to preserve itself free from every sin. 

Devotion to Mary, to be true, must be 
profound and fruitful, deep-seated in the 
heart, and proving the uprightness of 
the will by works. Mary, in the words 
of Ecclesiasticus mystically applied to 
her by the Church, says : The Creator of 
all things commanded and said to me; and 
he that made me rested in my tabernacle, 
and he said to me: Let thy dwelling be 
in Jacob, and thy inheritance in Israel, 
and take root in my e\QCt(Eccl. xxiv.12.14). 
And I took root in an honorable peo- 
ple, and in the portion of my God, his in- 
heritance: and my abode is in the full as- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 33 

sembly of saints (xxiv. 16). True devotion, 
therefore, must have its roots in the heart 
and not dweli merely upon the lips. 
Many ask of God and receive not be- 
cause they ask amiss {James iv. 3). Like 
the Jews, they draw near to the Lord, 
and with their lips glorify him; but their 
heart is far from him (Is. xxix. 13). In 
like manner, many content themselves 
with reciting, in a hurried manner, the 
Rosary, or other prayers in honor of 
the Blessed Virgin, or with a careless 
visit to her image on festival days; but 
they never think of consecrating to her 
the throbbings of the heart, far more pre- 
cious in her eyes than all mere bodily 
homage. Man seeth those things that 
appear, but the Lord beholdeth the heart 
(1 Kings xvi. 7) ; and into the inmost recess- 
es of the heart Mary wishes to penetrate, 
to cast root downward, and bear fruit up- 
ward (Is. xxvii. 31). 

ASPIRATION. 

Holy mother, obtain for me purity of life. 

PRACTICE. 

Perform some acts of solid virtue in 
honor of Mary. 

LITANY. 

. Read Mary Queen of May, by Brother 
Azarias. 



34 



THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 



FOURTH DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR THE MOST HOLY 
NAME OF MARY. 

"The Lord called thy name a great olive tree, 
fair, fruitful, and beautiful. "Jer. xi. 16. 

C OD hath exalted his Son, and hath 
^ given him a name which is above 
every name; that in the name of ]esus 
every knee should bow, of those who are 
in heaven, on earth, and in hell; and that 
every tongue should confess that the 
Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God 
the Father {Phil. ii. 9). To Mary, also, says 
Richard of St. Lawrence, the most holy 
Trinity has given a name that is above 
every name after that of her Son, and has 
endowed it with so great majesty and 
power, that all the creatures of heaven, 
earth, and hell bow with reverence 
when they hear it pronounced. Blessed 
be the Lord because he has so exalted 
the name of Mary that her praise shall 
never cease amongst the children of men, 
From the treasures of the Divinity the 
name of Mary is drawn*, and it is so august 
in gffory and power that its mysterious sig- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 35 

niflcations can never be fully explained. 
A shadow of this name was presented 
by the prophet Jeremias under the sym- 
bol of an olive tree, fair, fruitful, and 
beautiful. The glory and majesty of Mary 
were likened by Ecclesiasticus to a fair 
olive tree in the plains, And the spouse 
of the Canticles expressed its virtue un- 
der the figure of oil. Thy name is as oil 
poured out {Cant. i. 2). The significa- 
tion of the name of Mary shows that it is 
a name of glory, expressing her most 
peculiar prerogatives of excellence; and 
it is also a name of the highest utility 
to men. As a name of glory we should fre- 
quently repeat it. As a name of utility, 
we should frequently invoke it, both in 
life and in death. 

I. 

The Church commemorates, with 
annual solemnity, the heroic virtues 
and noble achievements of the saints. 
Every year also she not only commem- 
orates the different virtues and triumphs 
of Mary but assigns a day to be es- 
pecially consecrated to the honor of 
her most sacred name. To this dis- 
tinction the Virgin of Nazareth has 
a rightful claim ; because, according to 



36 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



the Fathers, her name issued from the 
treasures of the Divinity, and was im- 
posed upon her by her parents, in obe- 
dience to a revelation made to them by 
an angel of the Lord. Names imposed bv 
the Almighty, says St. Thomas, signify 
the grace imparted to those to whom 
such names are given. The name of Mary, 
according to St. Ambrose, signifies 
Mother of God. And indeed, the Holy 
Virgin was designated in the eternal de- 
crees as the first-born of creatures, only 
because she was to be the temple of the 
living God, and the mother of the eternal 
Word made flesh. 

St.Bernardine reasons as follows: As the 
Son of God sits at the right hand of the 
Father on high, being made so much bet- 
ter than the angels, as he has inherited 
a more excellent name above them, 
which name implies that he is the Son of 
God, of the same nature with his Father, 
so also the Virgin Mary, mother of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, has been made so 
much better than the angels as she has 
inherited a more excellent name above 
all pure creatures — the name of Mother 
of God. No other creature, says St. 
Bonaventure, can appropriately bear 
this illustrious name. The dignity of 
Mary is announced by her name, says St. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 37 

Chrysologus, Mary, that is, sovereign 
lady. Mary, adds St. Bonaventure, "is 
sovereign mistress of the angels in 
heaven, of the men on earth, and the de- 
mons in hell." As soon as Mary was des- 
tined to be the mother of the Lord she 
received a kind of supreme authority, in- 
herent in this title, in this imcomparable 
dignity; just as, amongst men, the spouse 
of him who is elevated to distinguished 
power, assuming the title of the family, 
his state, condition, and name. Hence 
the Blessed Virgin at her birth received 
the name of Mary in view of that which 
she was to become, and of the dignity to 
which God had predestined her. If Christ, 
then, is the Lord and Ruler of the uni- 
verse, Mary has been appointed the sover- 
eign mistress of all creatures, and who- 
ever bends the knee to Jesus should bow 
suppliantly in the presence of his 
mother Mary. 

The name of Mary, moreover, is a 
name of most happy augury for him who 
shows it honor ; for it signifies also 
star of the sea. Hail, Star of the Sea, is 
a salutation addressed to Mary by the 
Church. The Holy Virgin, says St. Am- 
brose, is the polar star that guides safely 
to the harbor of salvation. The world 
may be likened to a tempest-tossed ocean, 



38 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

filled with rocks and shoals, and mon- 
sters. How shall we escape destruction 
in navigating it ? Our only hope is to have 
recourse to Mary, our guiding-star. By fol- 
lowing her we shall reach the port unin 
jured. Mary, says St. Thomas, is called 
a Star ; and as mariners reach the haven 
under the guidance of the stars, Christians 
reach glory conducted by Mary. 

According to the Fathers of the Church, 
the name of Mary is also interpreted Sea, 
because, as the Sea is the receptacle of 
all the waters of the earth, Mary is the re- 
ceptacle of all graces. The angel saluted 
her, Hail, full of grace {Luke i. 28), St. 
John Damascene calls her an abyss of 
grace. Hence, concludes blessed Denis, 
as no one can number the drops of 
water in the ocean, no one can express 
the abundance of the grace and the great- 
ness of the glory of Mary. 

St. Thomas and St. Bonaventure inter- 
pret the name of Mary, Enlightened and 
Enlightening ; for she is the mother of 
Him who is the true light of the world, 
and approaching more nearly than any 
other creature the Sun of Justice— light 
by essence. None other has received 
light so abundantly, and none is so well 
prepared to communicate it to others. 
She is the dawn that ushered in Him who 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 39 

enlighteneth e\ ery man that cometh into 
this world {John i. g). Nations en- 
lightened by Jesus Christ, people sitting 
before in darkness and in the shadow of 
death (Luke i. 79), you have seen a great 
light. But by means of whom ? By means 
of Mary, who gave to the world the Sun 
of Justice. She is the great wonder that 
appeared in heaven to St. John — a woman 
clothed with the sun, and the moon un- 
der her feet, and on her head a crown of 
twelve stars (Apoc. xii. 1). She with her 
light enlightened the world, but she her- 
self was irradiated by infinite light, and 
in virtue of her name was enlightened 
and enlightener. Let then the glorious 
name of Mary, telling of her grandeur, be 
re-echoed with hope and trust, joy and 
triumph, by all her children. 

II. 

The name of Mary is, besides, replete 
with grace and benedictions, and can 
never be uttered without advantage to 
him who devoutly invokes it. According 
to St. Ambrose, the name of Mary is a 
sweet ointment that breathes the odor of 
divine grace. It has been compared in 
its virtue to oil, for it heals the sick, dif- 
fuses around a delicious odor, and en- 



40 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



kindles in the heart the fire of divine 
love. So great is the virtue of the name 
of Mary, that devoutly invoked, it softens 
the hardness of the sinner's heart, and 
encourages him to hope for pardon for 
the past, and for grace to lead a virtuous 
life. The name of Mary is a tower of 
strength ; if the sinner flies to her for 
succor, all tenderness and compassion as 
she is, he shall assuredly obtain salvation. 
No infirmity is so malignant that it will 
not yield without delay to the eflicacy of 
her name (St. Ambrose). Take courage 
then, O sinners ; if your sins be as scar- 
let, they shall, through the intercession 
of Mary, be made as white as snow ; and 
if they be red as crimson, they shall be 
white as wool (Is. i. 18). The invocation 
of the name of Mary, says the pious 
a Kempis, is a short prayer, easy to be re- 
membered, sweet to be thought of, and 
powerful to protect us against all our en- 
emies. 

Everyone knows, from sad experience, 
how his soul is harassed by the rebellion 
of passion and the assaults of temptation. 
But Mary is our shield in youth and in 
old age, in life and in death. The spirits 
of darkness, says a Kempis, dread the 
name of Mary, and when they hear it 
invoked, they flee as from consuming 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 41 

flames (Z. iv. ad. Novif). Not more rap- 
idly, adds St. Bonaventure, is wax melted 
before the fire, than the demons turn in 
precipitate flight at the sound of the 
most holy name of Mary (in Spec). 
Satan assails us with all the fury of temp- 
tation in the last hour of life, but the de- 
vout invocation of the name of Mary 
dissipates every fear {St. Bon. Spec). 
Hence we may affirm again with St. Ger- 
manus, that as respiration is a certain sign 
of life in the body, so the frequent invoca- 
tion of the name of Mary is either a sure 
sign of the life of grace, or that grace 
will soon be obtained. For she has 
power, says Gerson, to accomplish the 
reconciliation of the sinner with God, to 
open the gates of heaven, to give 
strength to us against all the power of the 
air, and to render assistance in every 
necessity of soul and body, The name of 
Mary therefore expresses her greatness, 
and is beneficial to those who devoutly 
invoke it, in life and in death. 

ASPIRATION. 

Hail, Queen of Heaven ! Queen of An- 
gels ! 

PRACTICE. 
Invoke frequently the name of Mary, a 



42 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



name of joy to angels, of usefulness to 
men, and of terror to demons. 

LITANY. 
Read Father Fader's Hymns. 



FIFTH DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR MARY AS MOTHER 
OF GOD. 

" There shall come forth a rod out of the root 
of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his 
root." Js. xi. i. 

WHILST the Jews were becoming 
every day more deeply immersed in 
iniquity, and when Jerusalem had re- 
nounced the covenant of the Lord by 
idolatry and depravity of morals, the 
prophet Isaias arose, who foretold to the 
people of Juda their future captivity in 
Babylon and their subsequent liberation. 
These prophecies, as sacred commenta- 
tors understand them, symbolized other 
events far more sublime and important : 
the slavery of the human race under the 
power of Satan, and its future liberation 
by Jesus Christ. And the prophet, in- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 43 

deed, with his mind filled with the spirit 
of God, and eyes fixed on the ages to 
come, exclaimed : There shall come forth 
a rod from the root of Jesse, and a flower 
snail rise up out of his root. And the 
spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the 
spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the 
spirit of counsel and of fortitude, the 
spirit of knowledge and of godliness (Is. 
xi. 12). But the mystic rod and the pro- 
phetic flower, what do they signify? The 
Fathers of the Church with one voice re- 
ply, the rod is Mary, the flower is Jesus 
Christ, her Son. Isaias himself had al- 
ready declared to Achaz: Behold, a virgin 
shall conceive, and shall bear a son ; and 
his name shall be called Emmanuel (Is. 
vii. 14). Mary therefore, under the ob- 
scurity of symbols and figures, was pro- 
phetically pointed out to the people of 
the Lord before the coming of our divine 
Redeemer; and we, who live under the 
peaceful empire of the law of grace, hold 
as a dogma of our religious faith, that 
Mary is the true mother of God. And as 
from her motherhood arise all the great- 
ness, the gifts, and the privileges of Mary, 
and all the good that descends to us 
through her, we owe to Mary especial 
honor : first, because she is the mother of 
God ; secondly, because she enjoys the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



greatest dignity that can be bestowed on 
a mere human creature. 

I. 

The oracles of the prophets had ceased, 
and the sceptre had been taken away 
from Juda {Gen. xlix. 10). Just souls 
had begun to discern the termination of 
their sighs in the completion of the 
seventy weeks predicted by Daniel {Dan. 
xi. 25) ; with Mary had appeared the 
dawn which announced the approaching 
rising of the Sun of Justice : then the 
angel Gabriel descends from the highest 
heavens, and presents himself before the 
youthful Virgin Mary, and says to her: 
Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with 
thee: blessed art thou among women. 
Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found 
grace with God: behold, thou shalt 
conceive, and bring forth a son; and thou 
shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be 
great, and shall be called the Son of the 
Most High: and the Lord God shall give 
unto him the throne of David his father; 
and he shall reign in the house of Jacob 
forever {Luke i. 28-32). Mary, however, 
being a virgin, and having consecrated 
herself to God from her earliest years, and 
wishing to preserve unsullied her virginal 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 45 

purity, said to the angel: How shall this 
be done, because I know not man? And 
the angel answering, said to her: The Holy 
Ghost shall come upon thee, and the 
power of the Most High shall overshadow 
thee, and therefore also the Holy One 
who shall be born of thee shall be called 
the Son of God {Luke i. 34, 35). 

Heaven and earth awaited with anxiety 
the answer of Mary ; for in the eternal 
decress of God, her consent was one of the 
requisite conditions of the incarna- 
tion. The souls of the departed just 
prayed for the consent of the Virgin, 
that heaven might be opened to their en- 
trance. The angel was anxious to bear a 
speedy answer to the Father from whom 
he had received his mission. The Son of 
God waited only to hear her speak, — Be 
it done to me according to thy word, — to 
descend from heaven and unite in her 
bosom the divine with the human nature. 
Return, OMary ! cries out St. Bernard, the 
reply wished for by heaven and earth. 
The sovereign Lord of all things, w r ho de- 
sires thy comeliness, now desires thy con- 
sent, on which depends the salvation of 
the world. And him, to whom thou wast 
pleasing in silence, thou wilt please still 
more by speaking. 

Mary became the mother of God. Ris- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ing up she went into the mountainous 
country with haste, into a city of Juda; 
and she entered into the house of Zach- 
ary and saluted Elizabeth. And it came 
to pass when Elizabeth heard the saluta- 
tion of Mary, the infant leaped in her 
womb . and Elizabeth was filled with the 
Holy Ghost, and she cried out with a loud 
voice and said ; Blessed art thou among 
women ; and blessed is the fruit of thy 
womb, And whence is this to me, that 
the mother of my Lord should come to 
me {Luke 1. 39-43)? And when Mary's 
days were accomplished that she should 
be delivered, she brought forth her first- 
born son [Luke 11. 6, 7). And after eight 
days were accomplished that the child 
should be circumcised, his name was 
called Jesus, which was called by the an- 
gel, before he was conceived m the womb 
(21). And not long after, an angel of the 
Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: 
Arise, and take the child and his mother, 
and fly into Egypt; and be there until I 
shall tell thee. For it will come to pass 
that Herod will seek the child to destroy 
him {Matt. ii. 13). And at the marriage 
in Cana of Galilee, the wine failing, the 
mother of Jesus saith to him: They have 
no wine; and she saith to the waiters: 
Whatsoever he shall say to you, do ye 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 47 



{John ii. 1-5). And is it not written: There 
stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother 
and his mother's sister, Mary of Cleophas, 
and Mary Magdalene {John xix. 25)? Rest- 
ing upon these reasons and these author- 
ities, theChurchcutofTfromher Commun- 
ion those who, with heretical wickedness, 
should attemptto take away from the glory 
of Mary by denying that she was the moth- 
er of God {Council of Efthesns, an. 431). 

II. 

Mary, being the mother of God, is 
evidently exalted in dignity above all 
creatures. Although she is of most il- 
lustrious race, of the blood of the Pa- 
triarchs, and of the royal family of David, 
this is naught in comparison with the no- 
bility, incomparably greater, which she 
acquires from her Son {St. Pet. Da?nascen) t 
The more noble the son is, the greater 
the honor of the mother ; and the son of 
Mary being of infinite dignity and author- 
ity, the honor of his mother must be al- 
most immeasurable. She alone can say 
with the eternal Father to the eternal 
Son: Thou art my son ; this day have I 
begotten thee {Is. ii. 7). The Father says 
to Jesus, by the mouth of the Prophet: 
Thou art my son in virtue of eternal gen- 



48 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



eration. Mary, by the Evangelist, says 
also to Jesus : Thou art my son in virtue 
of generation in time. And, as the tree 
is known by its fruits, the dignity of Mary, 
the mother of Jesus, is almost infinite 
(Alb. Mag.). Great is the elevation of 
Angeis, Archangels, Thrones, Domina- 
tions, Powers, Cherubim, and Seraphim ; 
but they are all far inferior to Mary. Great 
are the Patriarchs, the Piophets, the 
Apostles, the Martyrs, the Confessors 
but Mary is their Queen. Mary, says St. 
Gregory the Great, is the mountain of 
Isaias on the summit of the other moun- 
tains ; for she transcends in ioftmess of 
glory all angels and men. Mary is the 
silvery moon that illuminates by night 
the path of the traveler. Mary is the sun 
that by its effulgence eclipses the light of 
all the stars, and rules in splendor as if 
the stars had no existence. Fair as the 
moon, bright as the sun. 

The intimate union also between Mary 
and God declares the sublimity of her 
dignity. Christ, the Son of God, received 
his human nature from Mary. By her di- 
vine maternity, therefore, Mary is most 
closely united with the infinite person of 
Christ ; hence accrues to Mary a dignity 
almost infinite. 

Mary, according to St. John Damascene, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 49 

by becoming the mother of the Creator, 
became at once the Queen of all crea- 
tures. Hence, says Gerson, there belongs 
to Mary a kind of natural dominion over 
the whole universe. All creatures, says 
St. Bernard, in whatever rank of being, 
whether merely spiritual, as angels ; or 
rational, as men ; or corporeal, as purely 
material beings ; all in the heavens and 
on the earth, and in the places under the 
earth, that are subject to the omnipotent 
dominion of God, are subject also to the 
authority of the Holy Virgin Mary. The 
Church sanctions these assertions by sa- 
luting Mary as Queen of Heaven, Queen 
of Angels, Queen of the World. 

ASPIRATION. 

After this our exile, show us Jesus, the 
blessed fruit of thy womb. 

PRACTICE. 

Say your beads daily in honor of the 
Mother of God. 

LITANY. 

Read one of Cardinal Newman's Sermons 
on the Mother of God. 



50 



THE MONTH OF OUR LAD' 



SIXTH DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR MARY OUR 
MOTHER. 

"The valiant men ceased, and rested in Israel 
until Debbora arose, a mother arose in Israel." 
Judges v. 7. 

After the death of Aod, the children 01 
Israel again did evil in the sight of the 
Lord ; and the Lord delivered them up in- 
to the hands of Jabin, king of Chanaan, 
who reigned in Asor {Judges iv. 1, 2), and 
Asor subjected them for twenty years to 
all the hardships of servitude. Then the 
Lord bethought himself of his mercy to 
Israel, and raised up a woman to rule and 
deliver his people. She was Debbora, a 
prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, and she 
sat under a palm tree which was called by 
her name, between Rama and Bethel, in 
Mount Ephraim ; and the children of Is- 
rael came up to her for all judgment 
{Judges yv. 4, 5). So just were her judg- 
ments, and so mild and grateful her 
rule, that the people with acclamation 
saluted her as mother. The valiant men 
ceased and rested in Israel, until Deb- 
bora arose, a mother arose in Israel. This 
is an image of the vicissitudes which 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 



51 



should both sadden and rejoice the hearts 
of men. Our first parents did evil in the 
sight of God, and instead of preserving 
for their children the sanctifying grace 
which had been intrusted to them, they 
transmitted to them a woful inheritance 
of evils. We experience every day the 
deadly effects of this inheritance. Our 
understanding is darkened and our heart 
is constantly exposed to the fury of a 
thousand raging passions. But, thanks to 
the goodness of God, if the tribes of Is- 
rael had, to comfort and rule them, their 
mother, we have for our support and 
guide a far greater mother than Deb- 
bora — Mary, the mother of God. Debbora 
was only a passing figure of the glorious 
Virgin who came to us in the fulness of 
time. Debbora was a mother for a brief 
period, and to the Israelites alone ; Mary 
is a mother for all the children of men, 
and for all the ages of eternity. She, 
by addressing continual prayers to Jesus, 
discharges the office of a mother in our re- 
gard, and she never fails to turn her coun- 
tenance of love to him who with confi- 
dence invokes her aid. 

I. 

Whilst the prophecies were every mo- 
ment receiving fulfilment, and the work 



55 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



of man's redemption was approaching its 
consummation on Calvary ,a most moving 
spectacle touched the loving heart of the 
Savior. Some holy women, who had 
ministered to him during the course of his 
preaching, and who would not abandon 
him in the extremity of his sufferings, 
stood near his cross. Amongst themjesus 
beheld his mother, his tender mother 
whom a superhuman effort of love and 
courage had led to that mournful scene. 
The sight of her sufferingSon fills her with 
desolation ; but faith in her Son, the Sav- 
ior of the world, consoles her again ; and 
whilst the death of the Redeemer causes 
all nature to tremble, Mary looks on firm 
and immovable. Mary, at the foot of the 
cross, unites her heart with the heart of 
Jesus hanging on the cross, and well ac- 
quainted with the designs of Providence, 
she shares in spirit the sacrifice which is 
offered onGolgotha. Near his motherjesus 
observes his beloved disciple, he who 
leaned on his breast at the last supper. At 
the sight of the two persons so dear to 
him, the Savior, though tortured with 
pain, exhausted, and humbled by the 
insults, the outrages and the blasphe- 
mies of his persecutors, gathers his en- 
ergy, revives his tenderness, and gives 
them a final proof of his love, by making 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 53 

his last testament in their favor in the 
face of heaven and earth. But what 
can he bequeath them ? He had not in 
life whereon to lay his head. His garments 
had been divided amongst his execution- 
ers, and his very blood had been poured 
out to the last drop. But his love dis- 
covered the means of leaving to each a 
precious legacy by bequeathing them 
mutually to each other. He saith to his 
mother, Woman, behold thy son. After 
that he saith to the disciple, Behold thy 
mother. And from that hour the disciple 
took her to his own {John xix. 26, 27). 
The Fathers recognize in the beloved dis- 
ciple the representative of all the faith- 
ful whom the Savior loves with most 
tender and most perfect love. In the per- 
son of John we have 'been given to Mary 
as children, and Mary has been given to 
us as mother. It has been the will of God 
that Mary should adopt us as children, 
and he required of us that we should ac- 
knowledge her as mother. 

Man may be considered under a twofold 
aspect, as regards the body, and as regards 
the soul. A twofold life is thus found in 
man: the one corporal, the other spirit- 
ual. Again the soul of man is to be con- 
sidered, not only with reference to natural 
life, but much more with reference to su- 



54 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 

pernatural life produced by sanctifying 
grace. On these grounds Richard of St. 
Lawrence thus reasons: If Eve is called 
the mother of the living, because from 
her descends to all men the life of nature, 
much more should Mary be called the 
mother of the living, because she is the 
mother of him from whom all receive the 
life of grace. St. Bernardine teaches, that 
when the Virgin gave her consent to the 
incarnation of the Lord, from that mo- 
ment she bore us all spiritually in her 
bosom with all the affection of a most lov- 
ing mother. One was the Son, says Wil- 
liam of Paris, borne by the Virgin Mary, 
and he was the Savior of the world ; 
but in giving to the world him who is life, 
she brought forth many to the life of 
grace. Mary is then the mother of Christ 
by nature, and she is at the same time the 
mother of all Christians by grace. 

11. 

Mary is not only our mother in name, 
but she performs every day the part of a 
most loving mother. In the kingdom of 
glory she implores continually her Son in 
our behalf, for it is he who has consigned 
us to her as children. If Christ is our advo- 
cate with his Father, she is our advocate 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



55 



with her Son, Christ Jesus, our Savior. 
She is the mother of grace for the just 
man, that he may persevere and advance 
in the way of virtu-; and she is the mother 
of mercy for the sinner who has the will 
to be converted to God. To all she says 
in the words of divine wisdom: I am the 
mother of fair love, and of fear, and of 
knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is 
all grace of the way and of the truth: in me 
is ail hope of life and of virtue. Come 
over to me, all ye that desire me. and 
be filled with my fruits(2sh:/. xxiv. 24, 26). 
Blessed is the man that heareth me. and 
that watcheth daily at my gates, and wait- 
eth at the posts of my doors. He that 
shall find me shall find life, and shall have 
salvation from the Lord [Prov. v'lii. 34. 35). 
Mary, says one of her devout servants, 
loves us ardently because she adopted us 
as children, and wishes us to call her 
Mother of Love. Xo precept has been 
given to parents to love their children. 
This is a love of natural necessity. 
Wild beasts even are taught by nature 
to love their own offspring. Can a 
woman, says Isaias, forget her infant, so 
as not to have pity on the son of her 
womb ? And if she should forget, yet 
will not Mary forget us. She ardently 
desired to die with Jesus out of love for 



56 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



us, whom he so excessively loved. The 
Son was expiring in the cross, says St 
Ambrose, and Mary was in spirit offering 
herself to die with him for our benefit. 

The love of Mary for men arises from 
her love for God. The love of God and 
the love of our neighbor are embraced in 
the same precept. This commandment 
we have from God. that he who loveth 
God must love also his brother (i John iv. 
21). The more love for God increases, the 
more increases love for our neighbor. 
What did not an Alphonsus Liguon per- 
form in tha kingdom of Naples, a Charles 
Borromeo in the territory of Milan, or a 
Father Damian among the lepers? And 
why ? Because they were inflamed with 
a strong and active love for God. But 
in love for God, Mary far excels all t::e 
Saints ; therefore in love of her neigh- 
bor. Man* is more ardent and earnest 
than they were. Mary loves us because 
we are her children, given to her by the 
dying Savior. And she loves us fer- 
vently, because Jesus Christ has pur- 
chased us at the infinite price of his pas- 
sion and death. She knows full well that 
her Son came into the world to seek and 
save that which was lost. She knows 
that Jesus Christ, although God, emptied 
himself, taking the form of a servant, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 5? 

being made in the likeness of men, and in 
habit found as a man ; that he humbled 
himself, becoming obedient unto death, 
even the death of the cross. Mary must 
then love those whom God loves ; and as 
God loves in order to save, and most 
ardently desires that we all be saved. 
Mary is for us a loving mother, whose 
whole solicitude is employed to conduct 
us to heaven. 

ASPIRATION. 

Show thyself a mother, O most sweet 
Virgin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

On bended knees offer yourself to Mary 
as a child, and entreat her blessing, 

LITANY. 



Read a chapter of Father Mutter's De- 
votion cf the Holy Rosary. 



58 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



SEVENTH DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR MARY OUR 
QUEEN. 

"The king loved her more than all the women ; 
and he set the royal crown on her head, and 
made her queen instead of Vasthi." Esther ii. 17. 

SSUERUS having repudiated Vashti, 
sent persons all through the prov- 
inces, to look for beautiful maidens and 
virgins, and to conduct them to the city 
of Susan, that he might appoint the one 
who should please him most, in Queen 
Vashti's place. There was a man in the 
city of Susan, a Jew named Mardochai, 
who had under his protection a niece, 
named Esther, exceedingly fair and beau- 
tiful. She also, among the rest of the 
maidens, was delivered up, to be kept in 
the number of the women. And she 
pleased Assuerus and found favor in his 
sight. And the king loved her more than 
all the women ; and he set the royal 
crown on her head, and made her queen 
instead of Vasthi {Esther ii). 

Many historical facts, recorded in Holy 
Writ, have an allegorical significance. In 
Assuerus God is shadowed forth, and in 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 59 

Esther, the most blessed Virgin. As As- 
suerus preferred Esther to all others for 
her beauty, and elevated her to the con- 
dition of Queen of the Persians, so God 
loved Mary amongst all creatures for her 
sanctity, and exalted her to the rank of 
Queen of all Christians. To heighten 
our sentiments of respect and devotion 
for Mary, let us consider how greatly she 
is loved by God, and that God has 
crowned her in heaven as our Queen. 

L 

The Scriptures and the Fathers of the 
Church teach us that God loved Mary 
above all created beings. In the book of 
Proverbs, Mary declares of herself, in the 
words applied to her by the Church — The 
Lord possessed me in the beginning of 
his ways, before he made anything from 
the beginning. I was set up from eter- 
nity, and of old before the world was made. 
The depths were not as yet, and I was al- 
ready conceived ; neither had the foun- 
tains of waters as yet sprung up ; the 
mountains with their huge bulk had not 
as yet been established ; before the hills, 
I was brought forth. He had not as yet 
made the earth, nor the rivers, nor the 
poles of the world. From the beginning, 



60 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 



and before the world, was I created. I was 
exalted like a cedar in Libanus, and as a 
cypress tree on Mount Sion. I was ex- 
alted like a palm tree in Cades, and as a 
rose plant in Jericho ; and as a fair olive 
tree in the plains, and as a plane tree by 
the waters in the streets, was I exalted. I 
gave a sweet smell like cinnamon and aro- 
matical balm ; as the vine I have brought 
forth a pleasant odor, and my flowers 
are the fruit of honor and riches. 

If from Proverbs and Ecclesiasticus we 
pass to the mystic book of Canticles, we 
find still more vividly expressed the love 
of God for the Holy Virgin ; for it is the 
celestial Spouse himself who celebrates 
her praises. As the lily among thorns, so 
is my love among the daughters [Cant. 
ii. 2). Who is she that cometh forth as 
the morning rising, fair as the moon, 
bright as the sun. terrible as an army set 
in array (Cant, iv. 9) ? The daughters 
saw her, and declared her most blessed ; 
the queens praised her (vL S). Such are 
the various mystic expressions employed 
by Scripture to describe the especial love 
cherished by the Almighty for Mary, and 
the supreme complacency with which he 
has always regarded her. These expres- 
sions have indeed been turned into rid- 
icule by the impious: but the sensual man 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. Gl 



perceiveth not the things that are of the 
spirit of God, for it is foolishness to him, 
and he cannot understand , but the spir- 
itual man judgeth all things (i Cor. h. 14), 
lor to him only is given the peace of God 
which surpasseth all understanding (Phil, 
iv. 7), whilst to the wicked it is utterly 
unknown. 

To be convinced that Mary is dearer to 
Almighty God than all other creatures, it 
is sufficient to reflect that she has been 
called the first-born daughter of the 
Father, that she is the mother of the Son, 
and the spouse of the Holy Ghost. Mary 
says of herself, in the words of Ecclesias- 
ticus: I came out of the mouth of the Most 
High, the first-born before all creatures 
(Eccl. xxiv. 5). God created her in the 
Holy Spirit, made her great in his sight, 
never suffered her to be sullied by sin, 
but preserved her from her conception 
pure and immaculate. The Blessed Vir- 
gin, says A Lapide, is the first amongst 
mere creatures : in her conception, nativ- 
ity, sanctiflcation, and glorification, God 
displayed his greatest power. God made 
in her as the first and most noble crea- 
ture, an image of himself and of all his 
works, that in her he might always and 
by all beings be praised and glorified. God 
loved Mary with especial love because he 



62 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



designed her to be the Mother of his only- 
begotten Son. This is an honor which ex- 
alts Mary above all the excellence of 
creatures, visible and invisible, whether 
they be considered separately or all com- 
bined. In view of this dignity, God con- 
ceived her distinctly in his mind, and 
chose her from all eternity, and adorned 
her with holiness, and beautified her with 
every virtue, that she might be rendered 
worthy to be his mother. This dignity be- 
ing reserved for her alone, is it surpris- 
ing that God should love her above all 
creatures ? Mary is the spouse of the 
Holy Ghost. How great, then, must be 
the love of God for Mary ! It has been 
announced that God sanctified his taber- 
nacle, that holiness belonged to his 
abode, and that he who would create it 
would repose in it. This was accomplished 
when the Angel said to Mary : The Holy 
Ghost shall come upon thee, and the 
power of the Most High shall overshadow 
thee. And therefore, also, the Holy which 
shall be born of thee shall be called the 
Son of God {Luke i. 35). And Mary re- 
plied : Behold the handmaid of the Lord ; 
be it done to me according to thy word 
(3S). 

Then, says St. Athanasius, the Holy 
Ghost descended upon her in the pleni- 



7 HE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



63 



tude of his virtues, and bestowed upon 
her the fulness of grace. The Blessed 
Virgin, writes Albertus Magnus, was full 
of grace, because she possessed in the 
highest degree the general and special 
graces communicated to all creatures ; 
because she possessed those graces of 
which every other creature is destitute ; 
because her grace was so great that 
greater could not be imparted to any mere 
creature ; because grace uncreated, which 
is God, she embraced wholly within her- 
self. 

It is true therefore, that if Esther was 
beloved by Assuerus above the other 
maidens for her beauty, Mary was beloved 
by Almighty God above all other crea- 
tures for her sanctity, so that the Father 
cherished her as his most beloved 
daughter, the Son as his most worthy 
mother, and the Holy Ghost as his im- 
maculate spouse. 

II. 

Mary enjoyed to the utmost extent the 
predilection of that God who is the be- 
stowerof every good gift, and he elevated 
her to the sublime dignity of Queen of 
heaven and earth. David saw her with 
prophetic vision, and exclaimed : The 



64 



THE MOXTH OF OCR LADY. 



Queen stood on thy right hand in gilded 
clothing, surrounded with variety (Ps, 
xliv. 9). God placed upon her head a 
crown of glory upon the mitre, wherein 
was engraved holiness, an ornament of 
honor; a work of power, and delightful 
to the eyes for its beauty (Eccl. xlv. 14). 
The Lord girded her about with a glori- 
ous girdle, and clothed her with a robe of 
glory: and crowned her with majestic at- 
tire (xlv. 9"). All the glory of the King's 
daughter is within. The daughters of 
Tyre with their gifts, all the rich among 
the people, shall entreat her countenance 
(Ps. xliv. 13, 14). in the Canticle of Can- 
ticles it is written of Mary: Come from 
Libanus. my spouse, come from Libanus, 
come ; thou shalt be crowned (Can.iv. 8). 
The daughters saw her, and declared her 
most blessed ; the queens praised her 
(vi. 8). 

And what say the Fathers of the 
Church ? If the Son is king, says St. 
Athanasius, the mother is really and 
truly queen. Mary, says St. Bernardine, 
merited the dominion of the world and 
the sceptre cf the universe, from the 
moment that she gave her consent to the 
Incarnation of the Word. One, writes 
Arnoldus Abbot, is the flesh of Mary and 
Christ, one the spirit, one the charity. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. f>5 

From the time it was said to Mary, — the 
Lord is with thee, the promise and the 
gift remained inseparably united. Unity 
admits of no division. I esteem the glory 
of the Son, not only common to the 
mother, but, in a certain manner, the same 
with the glory of the mother. Hence, the 
mother cannot be excluded from the 
dominion and power of the son. We can- 
not more effectually invoke Mary, says 
Gerson, than by calling upon her as 
mother of God ; for by this title she 
claims a kind of authority and dominion 
over the Lord of the whole world ; with 
greater wisdom, then, over all that is sub- 
jected to him. Therefore, concludes St. 
John Damascene, the mother is truly and 
undoubtedly the sovereign and mistress 
of all created beings. 1 

But when was Mary crowned Queen of 
heaven and earth ? On the day of her as- 
sumption. On that day the gloriousVirgin 
ascended the heavens, and, ineffably ex- 
alted, commenced her eternal reign. On 
that day she was placed at the right hand 
of the Father. Thus constituted Queen, 
she possesses by right the empire of the 
universe in union with her Son. The crea- 
tures which serve the most Holy Trinity 
serve also the glorious Virgin. Angels 
and men, all creatures in the heavens and 



66 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



on earth, because all are subjected to the 
dominion of God, are subject also to 
Mary {St. Bernard. Senen.). Mary is styled 
Queen of heaven because she excels 
saints and angels in glory, dignity, and au- 
thority. She is styled Queen of the earth 
because she concurs with her Son, the 
Lord of the earth, in the government of 
men and of earthly events. Continue then, 
O Mary,writes one of her devout servants, 
continue to govern and to dispose of 
what belongs to thy Son. Act with con- 
fidence, for thou art Queen, the mother of 
the King and his spouse, 

ASPIRATION. 

Glorious Queen of the World, intercede 
for us with the Lord. 

PRACTICE. 

Repeat frequently : Mail Mary, full of 
grace. 

LITANY. 

Read " The Hail Mary' by J. P. Vai a" 
Ere?nao,D. D, 



HE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



67 



EIGHTH DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR MARY QUEEN OF 
MERCY. 

''What wilt thou, Queen Esther ? What is thy 
request ? If thou shouldst even ask one half of 
the kingdom it shall be given to thee. "Esther v. 3 . 

FTER Esther found favor in the sight 
of Assuerus, and had the royal crown 
set upon her head, better days seemed to 
rise for the Hebrews, and the severity of 
the servitude under which they had 
groaned in the Persian empire seemed to 
be mitigated. But suddenly a furious tem- 
pest arose, which threatened with total 
ruin that unfortunate people. The impious 
Aman, not satisfied with being seated 
above all the satraps and princes of Per- 
sia, and with receiving honor from the 
people second only to that exhibited to 
the king, urged on by hatred, swore en- 
mity against all the Jews ; and he suc- 
ceeded in having an edict hung up in Su- 
san, and promulgated throughout the em- 
pire, commanding that all the Jews, both 
young and old, little children and women, 
should be killed and destroyed in one 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



day, When Mardochai had heard these 
things, he rent his garments, and put on 
sackcloth, strewing ashes on his head ; 
and he cried with a loud voice in the 
street in the midst of the city, showing 
the anguish of his mind ; and in all prov- 
inces, towns, and places to which the 
king's cruel edict was come, there was 
great mourning among the Jews. Es- 
ther, at the urgent solicitation of Mar- 
dochai, presented herself before the king, 
to crave mercy for her people. And when 
the king saw Esther standing, he said to 
her: What wilt thou, Queen Esther ? 
What is thy request? If thou shouldst 
even ask one half of the kingdom, it shall 
be given to thee. Then Queen Esther an- 
swered: If I have found favor in thy sight, 
O King, and if it please thee, give me my 
life, for which I ask. and my people for 
which I request : for we are given up. I 
and my people, to be destroyed, to be 
slain, and to perish. The petition of Es- 
ther was granted and the edict of destruc- 
tion was recalled. The joyful event was 
brought about by the intercession of 
the compassionate Esther. In reading 
Esther, who does not immediately 
turn his thoughts to Mary? Esther is 
one of the types of the most blessed 
Virgin. As Esther soothed the anger 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 69 



of Assuerus, and liberated her na- 
tion from destruction, so Mary, by the 
loveliness of her virtues, rendered the 
Almighty so favorable, that besides 
choosing her as his mother, he wished her 
to be a peacemaker for the human race, 
and the dispenser of his mercies. In this 
sentiment the Church salutes her : Hail, 
holy queen, mother of mercy ! Having al- 
ready considered that she is our queen, let 
us consider to-day that she is the Queen of 
Mercy, and let us reflect that she employs 
her mercy in favor of the just man and 
the sinner. 

I. 

If the Virgin of Nazareth, as the 
Fathers agree, by consenting to the In- 
carnation of the Word, merited the su- 
premacy of the world; if he who was born 
of her is king, and his mother should be 
reputed as queen ; if the mother cannot be 
excluded from the domination of her son; 
if the regal glory is not only common be- 
tween mother and son, but is almost iden- 
tical in both; then Mary must be esteemed 
as justly and truly our queen. And Mary 
is not only our queen, but she is a queen 
amiable, clement, faithful beyond meas- 
ure, who has always in view the happiness 
of the afflicted children of Adam. Hail, 
Holy Queen, Mother of mercy. 

In the opinion of Albertus Magnus.the 



70 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

very name of queen includes in its signifi- 
cation care and compassion for the poor. 
The greatness and magnificence of a ruler, 
as Seneca says, exhibit themselves in the 
timely succor ministered to the miserable. 
A usurper has always his own interests 
in view ; but a lawful ruler seeks to 
promote the welfare and happiness of 
his subjects. When Saul was chosen 
king of the people of Israel, the Almighty 
commanded his prophet to anoint him 
and sanctify him with oil, which is a 
symbol of mercy and compassion, that 
he might understand that he should be 
the father of his people, and that, like a 
father, he should cultivate in his heart 
sentiments of kindness and beneficence 
towards all his subjects. According to 
tne Psalmist [Ps. lxxi.j, the sovereign 
authority of Almighty God is exercised 
in justice and mercy. With justice he 
judges all men, and inflicts upon the 
wicked the punishment deserved by their 
crimes. With mercy he grants salvation 
to the righteous. And thus he recom- 
penses every one according to his works. 
The Blessed Virgin, says St. Thomas, 
by conceiving in her womb the Son of 
God and afterwards giving him birth, ob- 
tained one half of the kingdom of God, 
so that she is the queen of mercy, whilst 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



71 



Christ is the king of justice. Isaias had be- 
fore prophesied that God would prepare 
his throne in mercy. But what throne 
has God established in mercy? St. 
Bonaventure replies, that throne of the 
divine mercy is Mary, the mother of 
mercy, in whom all men found the relief 
of mercy. As we have a most merciful 
Father, sc we have a most merciful 
Mother. If the Lord our God is sweet 
and mild, and plenteous in mercy to all 
that call upon him, our Queen also is 
good, beneficent, patient, and of great 
mercy, propitiously accepting our pray- 
ers, and turning an attentive ear to the 
voice of our supplications. 

If we read the scriptures with care, 
and inquire into the object for which Al- 
mighty God, by ways so opposite and ex- 
traordinary, elevated Joseph to the 
highest dignities of Egypt, we discover 
that it was none other than the salva- 
tion of his people. 

In like manner we poor sinners address 
Mary our Queen in our own behalf. Think 
not, O Mary, that God has crowned thee 
Queen of the world solely that thou 
mightest consult thy own interest. He 
has exalted thee, that thou, being made 
so great, mightest feel a more lively com- 
passion for unhappy mortals, and exert 



y 72 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

thyself more effectually to alleviate their 
sorrows. 

But who can call in doubt the mercy 
of Mary? Who is ignorant that she is 
the mother of fair love and holy hope? 
Has not the Lord by countless figures 
indicated the mercy of his most holy 
mother? St. Fulgentius calls Mary the 
opening into heaven, because through 
her the Almighty poured forth the light 
of truth over all ages. He calls her the 
ladder of heaven, because through her 
God descended to the earth, and men may 
merit to ascend to heaven. He only will 
be allowed to ascend, who will believe 
that the Son of God descended to the 
earth and appeared in human form 
through the ever-glorious Virgin Mary. 
St. Bernardine teaches that Mary is the 
rainbow set in the clouds, a sign of the 
everlasting covenant that all flesh shall 
no more be overwhelmed with destruc- 
tion. 

And how great was the love of the 
Heavenly Father, when Mary exclaimed: 
My soul doth magnify the Lord ; and my 
spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. 
As Abigail was a figure of Mary, so Da- 
vid was a figure of our Lord. David was 
offended by the foolish Nabal, and God 
is insulted by the sinner. David was ap- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADW 



73 



peased by Abigail, and God is appeased 
by Mary. Abigail restrained the temporal 
vengeance of David, and soothed him by 
gifts and entreaties; Mary extinguishes 
the eternal vengeance of God by her 
prayers and her merits (St. Bo?iav.). No 
one, says St. Bernard, is so fit to extend 
the hand in order to arrest the sword of 
divine vengeance unsheathed against the 
sinner, as thou, O Virgin, replete with 
divine love, by whose means the merits 
of the passion of the Son are applied to 
us, and we receive mercy from the treas- 
ures of God our Lord. Mary is not, there- 
fore, only our queen, but she is also 
queen of mercy. 

II. 

If we consider in favor of whom Mary 
exercises her mercy, we find that she ex- 
ercises it for the just that they may per- 
severe, and for sinners that they may be 
converted to God. She employs it also 
for our temporal as well as our spiritual 
good. Moses relates {Gen. iv.) that God, 
seeing that the wickedness of men was 
great on the earth, repented himself that 
he had made man on the earth. And be- 
ing touched inwardly with sorrow of 
heart, he said, I will destroy man, whom 



74 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



I have created, from the face of the earth. 
And he commanded Noe to construct an 
ark of timber planks and to prepare it for 
the reception of the men and of the living 
things that were to be preserved from the 
fury of the destroying waters Eight 
persons of the family of Noe, and the an- 
imals necessary for the propagation of the 
different species, were saved by the ark 
from the waters of the deluge. St. Ber- 
nard, St. John of Damascus, and St. Bon- 
aventure, teach us that the ark was 
a figure of Mary, that, as by means of the 
ark, the eight persons and the animals in 
the ark escaped destruction, so the just, 
represented by the inmates of the ark, at- 
tain salvation by means of Mary. It is an 
article of our faith that no one is saved 
without the concurrence of divine grace ; 
and that a special assistance of God is nec- 
essary for perseverance in justice. This 
grace we obtain by means of Jesus Christ, 
who died, and who rose also again, who is 
at the right hand of God, who also mak- 
eth intercession for us. Mary can wish 
only what Christ Jesus wishes; but Christ 
wishes nothing but mercy. Mary there- 
fore uses mercy with the just, and entreats 
God to grant them the graces necessary 
for perseverance. 

Mary has equal care for sinners. As a 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 75 

fond mother, if she sees her little child 
weeping or suffering from a wound, has- 
tens to wipe away its tears and to bind up 
its wound, so the tender mother Mary 
never desists from her supplications to 
her Son in favor of the sinner, until the 
wounds made in the soul by sin are bound 
up and healed. Who ever invoked Mar)' 
without being heard ? Who ever craved 
her patronage and received a refusal ? It 
appears to be an established law of prov- 
idence that mercy shall be shown to all 
those for whom Mary intercedes. The 
law of clemency is on her tongue (Pr&u, 
xxxi. 26;. St. Bernard, inquiring of him- 
self why the Church invokes Mary by 
the sublime title of Queen of Mercy, re- 
plies, that this is done that we may firmly 
believe that Mary throws open the treas- 
ury of the divine mercy to whom she 
pleases, and as sne pleases. So that the 
sinner can never be lost if Mary protects 
him. Tne repentant sinner is never re- 
jected by Mary. However numerous may 
be his crimes, however frightful their de- 
formity, if he breathes with confidence at 
the feet of Mary one hearttelt sigh of sor- 
row, she instantly extends her merciful 
hand and withdraws him from the preci- 
pice of despair, and never abandons him 
until sne beholds him reconciled with 



76 ' THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 

God. Mary seeks our temporal and spirit- 
ual welfare. She is the mother and the 
protectress of the human family. She is a 
physician for the infirm, a guide for the 
wealthy, consolation for the desolate. 
Her holy and devout servants have en- 
titled her the gate of heaven, the glory 
of the human race, the refuge of sinners, 
the support of the elect, the fountain of 
graces, the harbor of the shipwrecked, 
the shield of the combatants, the mother 
of orphans, the protection of widows, 
the advocate of penitents, the prototype 
of the just, the hope and glory of Chris- 
tians, the title of honor of Catholics. I 
shall conclude with St.Anastasius Sinaite, 
by exhorting the Jew, the Greek, and the 
Gentile, ail men indeed, to seek and find 
that mother of mercy whom the Lord 
created for the assistance of the whole 
human race. Them that seek her she in- 
troduces into the kingdom of God ; and. 
by rendering them children of light, gives 
birth to heirs of the kingdom of heaven. 

ASPIRATION. 

From all sin deliver us, Mother of 
Me rev. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



77 



PRACTICE. 

Call frequently upon the name of Jesus 
and Mary. By honoring Jesus we honor 
Mary. By honoring Mary we honor Jesus. 

LITANY. 

Read Chapter II. of St. Luke, 



NINTH DAY. 

KOW WE SHOULD HONOR MARY QUEEN 
OF ANGELS. 

"And there appeared a great wonder in 
heaven ; a woman clothed with the sun, and the 
moon under her feet, and on' her head a crown of 
twelve stars." Apoc. xii. I. 

TJlfHEN we meditate attentively upon 
the books of the Prophets of God, 
our minds become so excited, that we 
seem to be living in their midst in the re- 
mote days of the ancient law, and to see 
them waking their harmonious harps, 
throwing themselves in song into the 
hearts of future ages, celebrating with 
hymns of exultation the mercies of God. 
In them everything inspires a sacred awe, 
because everything in them is grandeur, 
sublimity, mystery. But our feeling of 



78 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 

awe is greatly increased when we turn our 
thoughts to the Apocalypse of St. John, 
the Apostle. As the noble eagle disdains 
the lowly valleys, and builds his nest on 
the summit of precipitous cliffs, unknown 
to footstep of man and unvisited by 
birds of humbler flight, and, spreading 
his vigorous wings, emulates the swift- 
ness of the wind, buries himself in the 
remoteness of space, and gazes with un- 
dazzled eye in the face of the sun, so St. 
John, more sublime than the other 
Prophets, and more profound than the 
other Evangelists, soared so high that he 
reached the fountain source from which 
all things descend. Being exiled by 
Domitian to the barren and solitary isl- 
and of Patmos, and there continually ab- 
sorbed in divine meditations, God pre- 
sented to his mind various spectacles, 
sometimes joyful, sometimes afflicting. 
Amongst these was a most extraordinary 
prodigy that became visible in heaven. 
And what was this ? There appeared a 
great wonder in heaven ; a woman 
clothed with the sun, and the moon un- 
der her feet, and on her head a crown of 
twelve stars. But what is the mystery of 
this vision ? Albertus Magnus recog- 
nizes in that woman the great Virgin 
Mary r triumphant in Paradise, and hon- 



THE MONTH OT OUR LADY 79 

ored by all the angels and saints. The 
spouse of the Canticles, alluding to the 
glory of Mary, says that she is as fair as 
the moon, bright as the sun. The Church 
asserts of her, that on the day of her as- 
sumption she was exalted above the 
choirs of the angels in the heavens, and 
salutes her as Queen of the Heavens, 
Sovereign of the Angels. Let us now con- 
sider in what manner Mary is queen of 
the angels, and how she has been honored 
by them as such. 

- I. 

Jesus Christ, the Holy of Holies, and 
King of kings, is the head, not only of 
men, but also of the angels. The fulness 
of grace in Christ is the cause of all the 
graces which are found in intelligent 
creatures. The angels receive grace and 
glory from Christ, and acknowledge him 
as their king and head ; they conse- 
quently acknowledge as their queen the 
Blessed Virgin Mary, his most glorious 
mother. The Blessed Virgin is not only 
queen of the angels, but she may, in a 
certain sense, be justly called their 
mother. The angels receive illumination 
and the perfection of beatitude from 
Christ, by whom all things are restored 



80 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

in heaven and on earth ; therefore the 
most Blessed Virgin, the mother of 
Christ, is the cause in a measure of the 
glory of the angels, and may be appro- 
priately called their mother. 

Mary is the true mother of God ; the 
angels are but his servants; therefore she 
is so much better than the angels, as she 
has inherited a more excellent name 
above them. To none of the angels, but 
to jesus Christ alone, has God the 
Father said, Thou art my Son; this day 
have I begotten thee (Heb. i. 5). Which 
of the angels can say to the Redeemer 
and Savior of man : Thou art my Son ? 
It is enough for them, and they deem it 
a high honor that, being spirits by na- 
ture, they are made angels by grace {Ps. 
ciii. 4). Mary, on the contrary, know- 
ing that she is the mother of Him before 
whose infinite majesty the angels pros- 
trate themselves in adoration, says to him 
confidently and fearlessly: Thou art my 
Son. There is an immense difference, 
concludes St. John Damascene, between 
the mother of God and the servants of 
God. Rightfully, therefore, is Mary 
called Queen of Angels. 

Mary is not only queen of the angels 
but she immeasurably exceeds them in 
grace. St. Gregory the Great and many 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. . 81 

others teach us that angels are divided 
into nine orders or choirs. They form 
three hierarchies, each of which com- 
prises three choirs. The first hierarchy 
embraces the Seraphim, the Cherubim, 
the Thronesjthe second, the Dominations, 
the Virtues, and the Powers; the third, 
the Principalities, the Archangels, and 
the Angels. Their different names arise 
from the different offices for which they 
are destined. 

The Seraphim are so denominated 
from the divine love with which they are 
inflamed, and which they transfuse into 
others. But can any creature love God 
more ardently than Mary did ? The fer- 
vor of Mary's love was symbolized in the 
bush that burned without being con- 
sumed ; so says St. Bonaventure. The 
love which she bore her son was an infi- 
nite love, in the opinion of St. Bernardine. 
The greater the purity of heart, the 
greater the love, argues Albertus Magnus; 
but Mary possessed purity of heart in the 
highest degree ; therefore her love for 
God was of the utmost intensity, and 
greater cannot be found in created 
beings. Mary alone was saluted as full 
of grace; but grace is the daughter of 
divine love. Mary, says Richard of St. 
Victor, desired the salvation of all; she 



82 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



sought for it, and obtained it; indeed, she 
herself, by giving birth to the Savior, 
became salvation for all. Mary then 
loved God more than the Seraphim, and 
transfused her love into others. She is 
Queen of the Seraphim ! 

The Cherubim are so called from the 
knowledge with which they are adorned, 
and which they communicate to others. 
But the Blessed Virgin was adorned with 
the most eminent knowledge, by which 
she penetrated the abyss of divine wis- 
dom, bearing in her bosom him in whom 
are hidden all the treasures of wisdom 
and knowledge. She is Queen of the 
Cherubim ! 

The Thrones are so named, because in 
them is seated the divine majesty as 
judge, and through them the divine 
judgments are announced to other angels. 
But Mary is more exalted than the 
Thrones, because she is the real abode 
in which wisdom incarnate dwelt, the tem- 
ple of the Holy Ghost, and the august 
throne of the three divine persons, and 
in her the great work of the redemption 
of man commenced. Queen of Thrones 
is Mary then ! 

In the Dominations appears in the 
highest degree the supreme dominion of 
God over created things, and they hold 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 83 

dominion over the inferior angels. But 
Mary presides over all the angelic choirs; 
she commands them, as a lady her ser- 
vants, as a queen her subjects. The Dom- 
inations are obedient to her commands 
regarding the salvation of men, and find 
greater pleasure in serving her than in 
exercising dominion. Hail ! Queen of the 
Dominations ! 

The Virtues, being Invested with divine 
efficiency, watch over the general laws of 
the universe, and operate wonders both 
in the order of nature and of grace. But 
do not the Fathers esteem Mary herself 
a celestial prodigy, a most extraordinary 
wonder of the universe? It is something 
altogether new, says St. Epiphanius, to 
see in heaven a woman clothed with the 
sun. It is astonishing beyond measure 
that the creature should have become 
mother of the Creator, and have borne in 
her bosom him whom the heavens cannot 
contain. It is an incomprehensible mir- 
acle, that the Lord of the angels should 
have become the son of a virgin, and 
that, at her breast, he should have been 
nourished, who feeds the fowls of the air 
and the fishes of the sea and the animals 
of the forest, and arrays in beauty the 
flowers of the mead. And what part of 
the world, moreover, has not witnessed 



84 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the miraculous power of the Virgin ? 
Mary, therefore, is Queen of the Virtues ! 

The Powers participate in the mighti- 
ness of God, and curbing the audacity of 
the malignant spirits, render them harm- 
less to mortals. But Mary crushed the 
head of the infernal serpent. Woe to us 
if Mary's maternal kindness did not dis- 
cover to us the arts and wiles and snares 
of the envious spirits of the abyss ! Woe 
to us if we were not animated and 
strengthened by her in the combats of 
the spirit! Mary is Queen of the Powers! 

To the Principalities Almighty God 
consigns the guardianship of all rulers 
and governments. But the Blessed Vir- 
gin had the guardianship of the King of 
kings; and he was respectfully subject to 
her (Luke ii. 51). To Mary are applied the 
words of divine wisdom : In every nation 
I have the chief rule (EccL xxiv. 10). By 
me kings reign, and lawgivers decree just 
things; by me princes rule, and the 
mighty decree justice (Prov. viii. 15, 16). 
Mary has also under her patronage the 
universal Church — defends it, protects 
it, and crushes with her foot the hydra of 
heresy. Mary is Queen of the Principali- 
ties ! 

The Archangels announce to men af- 
fairs of moment, and are guardians of 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. £5 

pontiffs, kings, princes, and others in au- 
thority. Upon thy walls, Jerusalem, 
says Isaias, I have appointed watchmen 
all the day and all the night {Is. lxxii. 6). 
But the Holy Virgin is the guardian of all 
cities and of churches. Earthly poten- 
tates have committed their kingdoms and 
their newly-founded cities to the protec- 
tion of Mary. There is no Catholic king- 
dom or government or city, where tem- 
ples, altars, statues, and images, do not at- 
test that the patronage of Mary is, and has 
been, earnestly invoked. Justly then is 
Mary called Queen of Archangels! 

To the Angels is intrusted the office 
of guarding and protecting men individ- 
ually considered. But Mary was the 
guardian and protectress of God made 
man ! When Herod, enraged at the com- 
ing of the Messias, wished to imbrue his 
hands in his blood, she fled with her 
child and took shelter in Egypt, thus 
preserving him from the vengeance of 
that sanguinary king. Each of the angels 
is appointed to watch over one man 
alone ; but Mary has charge of all men 
together and of every one in particular ; 
for she is the mother and sovereign of all 
men, and looks upon them all as her ser- 
vants and children. The angels announce 
to men the things of heaven ; Mary dis- 



86 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

charges this office in a manner far more 
sublime than they. Hail, Mary, Queen of 
Angels ! exalted above them all in grace 
and glory ! All the angelic choirs 
bow before thee in awe and veneration, 
and sing ever the praises of their sover- 
eign Queen, 

II. 

But what devout homage have angels 
exhibited to Mary ? They so venerated 
her that we may address to her, as pro- 
ceeding from them, the words recorded 
in holy writ : We are thy servants; what- 
soever thou shalt command us we will do 
(4 Kings x. 5). In developing this second 
part we shall adhere closely to the Script- 
ures and the Fathers. 

St. Vincent Ferreri, speaking of the 
conception of the Blessed Virgin, and 
calling it light, because it was free from 
every shade of sin, thus expresses him- 
self: As soon as the soul of Mary was 
created it was sanctified, and immediately 
the angels in heaven celebrated the feast 
of her conception. Therefore does David 
sing, Light is risen to the just, and joy to 
the right of heart (Ps. xcvi. n). Light 
to Christ whose mother Mary is to be ; 
joy to the angels who were never stained 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 87 

with sin. This was the first honor shown 
to Mary by the angels in heaven. At her 
birth the princes of heaven, dazzled by 
her effulgence, exclaimed, Who is she 
that cometh forth as the morning rising, 
fair as the moon, bright as the sun [Cant. 
iv. 9) ? And learning by divine illustra- 
tion who she was, they bowed low in rev- 
erence in presence of her glory, and im- 
mediately intoning a canticle of praise to 
the Son of God and his future mother, 
drew forth from the divine treasury the 
name of Mary, and conveyed it from 
heaven to earth. When the time for the 
fulfilment of the prophecies arrived, the 
celestial messenger, who announced to 
her that she was to become the mother 
of God, could not have pronounced upon 
her a higher encomium than he did by 
saying, Hail, full of grace, the Lord is 
with- thee; blessed art thou among 
women. Fear not, Mary, for thou hast 
found grace with God. The Holy Ghost 
shall come upon thee ; and the power of 
the Most High shall overshadow thee. 
And therefore also the Holy which shall 
be born of thee, shall be called the Son of 
God. In the anxiety of mind caused by 
the persecution of Herod, it is the opin- 
ion of the Fathers that Mary and Joseph 
had angels to console them and accom- 



88 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 

pany them in their flight into Egypt and 
defend them from every danger. When 
Mary, after her death, was taken up into 
heaven in body and soul, the angels re- 
ceived her with acclamations and con- 
ducted her in triumph to the throne of 
God to be crowned queen of saints and 
angels, of heaven and earth. Let us then 
sing with the Church: The Holy mother 
of God is exalted above all the choirs of 
angels to the heavenly kingdom; and de- 
voutly exclaim with St. Athanasius : Thee 
all the celestial and terrestrial hierarchies 
proclaim blessed; and raising their hands 
on high, bless thee who art blessed in 
heaven, and on earth hailed as blessed. 

ASPIRATION. 

From the snares of the enemy free us, 
Holy Virgin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

In every temptation, call without de- 
lay upon the name of Mary. 

LITANY. 



Read Month of Mary by Father Beckx, S. J. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY- 89 



TENTH DAY. 

HOW WE SHOULD HONOR MARY QUEEN OF 
ALL THE SAINTS. 

"And in the last day the mountain of the 
house of the Lord shall be prepared, on the top 
of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above 
the hills ; and all nations shall flow unto it." Is, 
ii. 2. 

C REAT and wonderful is God ! And al- 
^ though the Hebrew nation was slow 
of understanding, stiff-necked, rebellious 
and disloyal, still, through his prophets, 
the Lord aroused their sluggish imagina- 
tions, and softened their stubborn hearts, 
by describing in symbols and figures the 
future magnificence of his religion. 
Filled with the spirit of God, the son of 
Amos lifted up his prophetic voice and 
sang, In the last day the mountain of the 
house of the Lord shall be prepared on 
the top of mountains, and it shall be ex- 
alted above the hills ; and all nations 
shall flow unto it. And many people 
shall go and say, Come and let us go up 
to the mountain of the Lord, and to the 
house of the God of Jacob, and he will 
teach us his ways, and we will walk in his 
paths ; for the law shall come forth from 



90 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

Sion, and the word of the Lord from 
Jerusalem. Thus prophesied Isaias of 
the future Savior of man — the Messias; 
foretelling his mercies, and the salutary 
changes which would be wrought 
amongst men by his appearance on earth. 
St. Gregory the Great, commenting on 
this passage of Isaias, writes as follows : 
By this mountain may be also designated 
the most Blessed Virgin Mary ; for she, by 
the dignity of her election, transcended 
the loftiness of every other most favored 
creature. Was not Mary an elevated 
mountain, who, to be prepared to con- 
ceive the eternal word, exalted the sum- 
mit of her merits above all the choirs of 
angels to the very throne of Eternity it- 
self ? The Virgin is that mountain, says 
St. John Damascene, which rises sublime 
above every mountain and hill, above 
angels and men, the mountain in which 
God was pleased to dwell. Mary is queen 
of all the saints, and as such the Church 
solemnly invokes her. In what manner 
is Mary queen of all the saints on earth 
and in heaven ? 

I. 

The supreme ruler of all kingdoms 
condescending to the desire of the He- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



91 



brews demanding a king, selected for this 
office Saul. And there was not among 
tne children of Israel a goodlier person 
than he ; from his shoulders and upward, 
he appeared above all tne people. The 
Almighty, wishing to give a queen to 
angels and men, sought for a woman who 
snould rise above all others in abundance 
of grace and multiplicity of merits, The 
favored one was Mary, who was so copi- 
ously replenished with merits and graces, 
and afterward exalted to glory so sublime 
that she far surpasses all the other saints 
in merit, grace and glory. The Blessed 
Virgin, then, not oniy exceeds in dignity 
the angelic spirits, but, like the moon in 
the midst of the stars, shines a queen 
amongst all the saints. 

Next to the angels the Church ranks 
the Patriarchs. Mary is their queen ; 
for she possessed all their gifts in a 
higher degree, all their virtues, all their 
merits, and eclipsed all their most bril- 
liant achievements. The most striking 
virtue of those holy men was faith. This 
is the lamp which, placed on the top of a 
mountain, throws light over the distant 
slopes and plains. Faith is the basis of 
every virtue, the foundation of the life of 
the true believer. Without it, it is impos- 
sible to pleas e Go d. Faith is the wisdom 



92 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



that subjugates the world. To it should 
we firmly cling ; according to it should 
we act. It is certain that the providence 
of God disposes, guides, and governs all 
things ; so that not a leaf falls from the 
tree, not a sparrow from the sky, with- 
out his pleasure. To him, therefore, 
should we wholly commit ourselves, fully 
confident that we shall receive from his 
hands timely aid. In this manner acted 
Abraham, who, when commanded to 
sacrifice his son Isaac, although he saw 
the course of the promise of God inter- 
rupted by this command and his own 
hopes deluded, still did not hesitate in 
faith. And he learned by experience 
that God alone saves those who hope in 
him, and that without him there is no 
powerful help nor useful counsel nor 
enduring providence. The faith of Abra- 
ham was a subject of admiration to after 
generations. So were the trials of Jacob, 
the innocence of Joseph, the strength of 
Samson, the patience of Job, the zeal of 
Elias, the justice of David, and the wis- 
dom of Solomon. But whatever existed 
in them of grace and virtue, whatever 
praises were pronounced of them, what- 
ever they heroically performed, we find 
combined in Mary. Hence, by St. Law- 
rence Giustiniani she is called the vivid 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 93 

exemplar of every virtue. The Blessed 
Virgin is therefore Queen of the Pa- 
triarchs, whether we regard her birth, 
she being of their race, or all the gifts of 
grace which she received from i\lmighty 
God. She is crowned with a double 
diadem ; one she inherits as daughter 
from her ancestors, the other, as mother 
she receives from her Son, 

The Church, after the Patriarchs, con- 
templates the Prophets. They are so 
named, because, by divine revelation or 
inspiration, they foresaw future events 
and foretold specifically their accom- 
plishment. To foresee and foretell future 
events is an eminent favor of the Holy 
Ghost. But Mary alone received the 
fulness of the Holy Ghost. Therefore she 
is greater than all the prophets. Mary was 
saluted by the angel as full of grace. She 
was assured that the Holy Ghost should 
come upon her, and that the virtue of the 
Most High should overshadow her {Luke 
i. 35). The Virgin is, moreover, called by 
the Church the seat of wisdom. The mind, 
therefore, of the Blessed Virgin was re- 
plenished by the infinite wisdom of God 
with light so abundant that she read in its 
brightness the past, the present, and the 
future. 

But when did Mary receive the spirit 



94 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



of Prophecy, and where are her predic- 
tions ? She acquired the prophetic spirit 
when she was full of grace and over- 
shadowed by the virtue of the Most 
High. She manifested the gift of proph- 
ecy when she foretold that all gener- 
ations should call her blessed {Lukei. 48). 
She is then Queen of the Prophets ! 

Mary is styled by the Church Queen 
of Apostles. The Apostles were called by 
the Redeemer the light of the world. 
You are the light of the world {Matt. v. 
14). To Mary belongs a more magnif- 
icent title. She may be called the Sun 
of the world ; because she enlightens 
those who are sitting in darkness and 
the shadow of death, and leads them to 
the attainment of divine grace. Accord- 
ing to St. Jerome, the name apostle is 
also interpreted master, instructor. But 
Mary is regarded by the fathers as in- 
structor of the apostles, as enlightener of 
the nations {St. Aug. ). We are taught 
by St. Thomas of Villanova that, after 
the death of Jesus, the apostles assem- 
bled in the room of the last supper, in 
company with Mary, and sought from 
her consolation and instruction. To 
Mary then justly belongs the title of 
Queen of Apostles. 

The Martyrs endured persecution and 



THE MONTH OB OUR LADY. 95 

death ; but more cruel and more multi- 
plied were the sufferings of Mary. To 
her the temple of Jerusalem was what 
Gethsemani was to her Son. Faithfully 
obedient to the law, she presented her 
infant to the Lord. Simeon seeing the 
Christ of the Lord and his mother ex- 
claimed : Behold this child is set for the 
ruin and for the resurrection of many in 
Israel, and for a sign which shall be con- 
tradicted ; and thy own soul a sword shall 
pierce (Luke ii. 34,35). How great was the 
affliction of Mary's heart when Herod 
was seeking the Child to destroy him. 
How great was her anxiety when the 
child Jesus remained in Jerusalem, and 
for three days she sought him sorrowing 
(Luke ii. 48). But her anguish who 
can express when Christ was betrayed 
by Judas, was captured by the Jews, in- 
sulted by the princes of the synagogue, 
scourged at the pillar, crowned with 
thorns, overwhelmed by the weight of 
the cross ; when, for three hours, he 
hung in agony between heaven and earth, 
and finally expired ? Nothing but a mir- 
acle of Omnipotence could have sus- 
tained our mother in her sorrows. St. 
Bernardine assures us that the afflictions 
of Mary's tender, loving soul, distributed 
amongst all creatures, would have caused 



96 



■THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



the immediate death of every living be- 
ing. 

St. Jerome names Confessors those who 
confess with the tongue the truths of the 
faith of Christianity, lead a holy life ac- 
cording to them, and at last depart in the 
Lord. But who ignores that Mary excelled 
all the saints in the practice of every 
Christian virtue, and served them all as 
a guide? They, by imitating her ex- 
ample, were great in humility, rich in 
poverty, sovereigns in obedience, an- 
gels in the flesh, heroes in persecution, 
sublime in prayer, and resplendent with 
every virtue. Mary, therefore, having ex- 
celled on earth in grace and virtue the 
Patriarchs, the Prophets, the Apostles, 
the Martyrs, and the Confessors, is to be 
saluted as Queen of all Saints ! 

II. 

But there are other powerful reasons 
which authorize the devout children of 
Mary to proclaim her Queen of all the 
Saints, namely the glory which Mary en- 
joys in heaven, and the patronage which, 
above all the saints, she extends to all the 
afflicted children of Adam. St. Peter, in 
the name of the Apostles, said to the Re- 
deemer: Behold, we have left all things and 
have followed thee : what, therefore, shall 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 97 

we have? And Jesus said to them : Amen, 
I say to you, that you who have followed 
me in the regeneration, when the Son of 
man shall sit in the seat of his majesty, 
you also shall sit on twelve seats 
judging the twelve tribes of Israel {Matt. 
xix. 27, 28). The apostles, for having re- 
nounced all things and followed Jesus, are 
seated in heaven. Will not Mary possess 
a seat brighter, more elevated than all 
the apostles? If a throne was set for the 
mother of Solomon, and she sat on his 
right hand (3 Kings \\. 19), is Mary held in 
less esteem by Almighty God? Is she not 
the mother of the King of kings ? She is 
then Queen of all the Saints! If, besides, 
the glory of the Saints is in proportion to 
the merits gained and the graces received, 
Mary, surpassing beyond measure all 
the Saints in merit and grace, enjoys 
greater glory and merit than they ; she 
is therefore their Queen. In the opin- 
ion of St. Bernardine, the glory of 
Mary differs as much from the glory of 
all the other Blessed as the sun differs 
from the other celestial bodies ; as they 
are illumined by the sun, so the whole 
celestial court is made bright by the 
brilliancy of Mary's glory. 

Mary, as mother of Jesus, possessing 
immense treasures of merit and grace, is 



98 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

much more powerful for our benefit than 
every other saint. The other saints, says 
Idiota, by right of protection, can render 
greater assistance in heaven to those 
who are particularly assigned to their 
care; but the Blessed Virgin, as their 
queen, is patroness and advocate of all 
Christians, and is equally solicitous for 
the welfare of all her subjects {Idiota de 
Contempl. Vzrg.). Do you fear,0 sinner,on 
account of your wickedness and your 
crimes,to approach the throne of the eter- 
nal Father ? This should not be: for the 
Father has his son Jesus as a mediator be- 
tween himself and man. Do you wish to 
have an advocate with Jesus Christ ? Im- 
plore the patronage of Mary. No tongue 
could enumerate the beneficent acts of 
Mary ; for they are almost infinite in num- 
ber. Favors and graces the greatest, the 
most remarkable, the most rare, when 
asked of her with humility of heart, have 
been readily obtained. Through recourse 
to her, sight has been restored to the 
blind, speech to the dumb ; the lame have 
been made to walk ; lepers have been 
cleansed ; and the possessed have been 
liberated from the power of the devil. 
The favors imparted by Mary to men are 
more numerous than the drops of water 
in the ocean, the leaves in the forest, and 



'THE MOXTH OF OUR LADl 



99 



the grains of sand on the sea shore. 
Hence, with unanimous assent, Europe. 
Asia, Africa and America, proclaim Mary 
Queen of all the Saints, because she more 
freely and abundantly than all the others 
distributes her benefits to the children 
of men. 

ASPIRATION. 

In thee above ail others did Christ our 
Savior find delight. 

PRACTICE. 

Thank God for the singular favors be- 
stowed upon the Blessed Virgin. 

LITANY. 

Read Lit any of Loretto by Archbishop 
Kenrick. 



ELEVENTH DAY. 

HOW TO HONOR MARY COOPERATING IN 
OUR REDEMPTION. 

"I will put enmities between thee and the 
woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall 
crush thy head." Gen. iii. 13, 

AFTER God had created the heavens 
"and the earth and set in order the whole 
universe, one being-.the most admirable 



100 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



in nature, still remained unmade. This 
being was man ; and God made him to 
his own image and likeness. He first 
formed the body of man which, though 
made of the slime of the earth, is the 
noblest work of visible creation. Into 
this body he breathed the breath of life. 
And man stood erect, a union of two 
substances: the one spiritual, the other 
material. Man, at his creation, was con- 
stituted by Almighty God in a state of 
grace and justice. The Lord placed 
Adam and Eve in a paradise of pleasure 
which he had planted from the beginning, 
and gave them rule over the fishes of 
the sea and the fowls of the air and all 
living creatures that move upon the 
earth {Gen, i. 26). And the Lord com- 
manded man, saying: Of every tree of 
paradise thou shalt eat ; but of the tree of 
knowledge of good and evil thou shalt 
not eat. For in what day soever thou 
shalt eat of it, thou shalt die the death 
{Gen. ii. 16, 17). 

Eve, alas! yielded to the enticement of 
Satan, who had taken the form of a ser- 
pent ; and along with Adam, Eve trans- 
gressed the commandment of Almighty 
God. Our first parents lost the friend- 
ship of the Lord by their disobedience. 
And the serpent, for having deceived 



THE MONTH OB OUR LADY. 101 

the woman, was cursed by the Almighty, 
who said to it: I will put enmities be- 
tween thee and the woman, and thy seed 
and her seed; she shall crush thy head. 
But who is she who is thus announced be- 
forehand by the Lord as destined to co- 
operate in our redemption ? The Fathers 
with one voice respond that it is Mary. 
She, by giving birth to him who lives 
forever and ever, brought salvation to 
man, and introduced life into the world. 
Hail, fair daughter of Joachim ! Thou art 
she who, like the dawn announcing the 
approach of the sun, didst awaken the 
hopes of desponding mortals. By means 
of thee, the Savior of man appeared on 
the earth. Of thee it may be said that 
thou hast filled heaven, emptied hell, re- 
paired the ruins of the celestial Jerusa- 
lem, and restored life to those who were 
lost in death {St. Bernard). Let us now 
prove that Mary may be said to have co- 
operated in our redemption because she 
gave her consent to the Incarnation of 
the Word, and because she had her part 
in the death of her Son. 

I. 

Scarcely had the first man fallen into 
sin when a sad and pernicious change 
took place, both in the moral and nat- 



102 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ural order. Before the whole world 
formed a delightful spectacle in the eyes 
of Adam, and all creation contributed to 
make him happy, even on earth. But 
after the first sin a change came over all 
things. The air grew dark and threatening. 
The heavens showed their anger by thun- 
der, hail, and tempests. The earth trem- 
bled, grew sterile, and required the sweat 
of man before furnishing him with nour- 
ishment. The waters prepared their bil- 
lows and whirlpools as instruments of 
destruction. The seasons were disturbed ; 
and animals, forgetting their primitive 
gentleness, became filled with fury 
and thirsted alter slaughter and blood. 
Adam and Eve, despoiled of sanctity and 
justice, for having violated the command 
of God incurred the anger and indigna- 
tion of the Lord, and consequently death, 
with which they had before been threat- 
ened ; and along with death, captivity 
under the power of Satan, who thence- 
forward held the empire of death. By 
their sin they also suffered detriment in 
body and in soul (Con. Trid. Stss. 5, Can. i). 
Then commenced that fierce and endless 
struggle between flesh and spirit men- 
tioned by St. Paul (Rom.vii. 23). 

But the God of mercy had written in 
his eternal decrees, that man should have 



THE MON TH OF OUR LA DY. 103 

a Redeemer: and as a woman was the oc- 
casion of all his misfortunes, he resolved 
that a woman should cooperate in his re- 
generation. He promised it himself in 
the beginning, and from time to time, 
through the patriarchs and prophets, he 
continued to indicate his design. Isaias 
raised his prophetic voice in the follow- 
ing words: There shall come a rod out of 
the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise 
up out of his root. And the spirit of the 
Lord shall rest upon him (Is. ix. i, 2). Be- 
hold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a 
son ; and his name shall be called Imman- 
uel (2s. vii. 14). But who is this wonder- 
ful rod ? Who is this fortunate Virgin? It 
is Mary. Let us now examine carefully 
the evangelical history and learn in what 
manner she cooperated in the redemp- 
tion of man. 

The prophets of Israel were silent; the 
royal sceptre of Juda had passed to the 
hand of a stranger; the seventy weeks of 
Daniel were near their completion ; the 
wnole world was in the enjoyment of pro- 
found peace, when all the creation was 
suddenly aroused by a brilliant light that 
burst forth from the highest heaven. It 
was the angel Gabriel, who, descending 
from heaven by order of God, presented 
himself to Mary in Nazareth, and said to 



104 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

her : Hail, full of grace ; the Lord is with 
thee : Blessed art thou among women. 
And let not my unusual salutation cause 
thee to fear. I am a messenger of peace 
and I assure thee that thou hast found 
favor with God. He wishes to break the 
chains w r hich hold man in the cruel slav- 
ery of sin ; and he will make use of thee 
to present to the eyes of man his Lord 
and Savior. Behold, thou shalt conceive 
in thy womb and shalt bring forth a son; 
and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He 
shall be great and shall be called the son 
of the Most High; and the Lord God shall 
give unto him the throne of David, his 
father, and he shall reign in the house of 
Jacob forever (Luke i. 31, 32). Mary en- 
tertained no doubt of the fulfilment of the 
angel's declaration ; but having made a 
vow of virginity she discreetly inquired 
in what manner it was to be accomplished. 
How shall this be done, for I know not 
man? The angel, answering, said to her, 
The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, 
and the power of the Most High shall 
overshadow thee ; and his work shall be 
the wonderful, immaculate, divine con- 
ception of Christ. And therefore also the 
Holy which shall be born of thee shall be 
called the Son of God. Heaven and 
earth awaited the answer of the Virgin of 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 105 

Nazareth. St. Augustine and St. Bernard 
express, in a lively manner, the ardent 
desire of all intelligent beings, begging 
for the Incarnation of the Word, and sup- 
plicating Mary to yield her consent. The 
angel, O most blessed Virgin, stands in 
eager expectation of a favorable answer; 
and we, likewise, expect from thee the 
words of consolation and peace. We have 
all been condemned to death ; but one 
word of thine will restore us to life. This, 
Adam, author of a ruined race, — this, 
Abraham, David, and all the Fathers of 
old, implore thee to utter. The whole 
world, prostrate at thy feet, entreats thy 
assent to the Incarnation. On thy lips de- 
pend the consolation of the miserable, the 
redemption of the captives, the salvation 
of all the children of Adam. Hasten to re- 
ply. Give joy to heaven and earth. Dis- 
miss the angel with thy humble protes- 
tation of submission to the pleasure of 
God, that he may convey it to the eternal 
Word, now standing on the threshold of 
heaven ready to descend into thy bosom. 
When Mary's pure lips humbly pro- 
nounced the words — Behold the hand- 
maid of the Lord: be it done to me accord- 
ing to thy word, — the union between the 
divine and human natures was consum- 
mated. The Word was made flesh; and 



106 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the heavens and the earth resounded 
with a canticle of thanksgiving. 

God, says William the Abbot, required 
the assent and cooperation of Mary, be- 
fore operating in her the ineffable mys- 
tery of the Incarnation. He did not 
wish to take flesh from her unless she 
would freely grant it (Cant. ii.). The 
consent of the Virgin was one of the 
conditions of the Incarnation of the 
Word established in the eternal decrees 
of God ; and, according to St. Augustine, 
the word of Mary was to close or open 
heaven {Semi. xvii. de Nat. Dom^). The 
consent of Mary, expressed in the 
terms, — Be it done to me according to 
thy word, was the beginning of grace 
and salvation. Mary, by this reply, tilled 
heaven with joy. supplied matter of ex- 
ultation to all the angels, furnished hope 
to the world held captive, overwhelmed 
all the demons with terror, gladdened 
the celestial messenger, and promised 
deliverance to the Patriarchs and Proph- 
ets and all the ancient Fathers (5/. Laur. 
Giustzn. Serm. de Annunt.) 

We also bear in mind that Mary not 
only assented to the Incarnation, but 
gave to the Divine Word the flesh which 
rendered him truly man and capable of 
satisfying for our sins by his bloody death, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 107 

thus operating our redemption. The 
Blessed Virgin, says St. Antoninus (P. 4. 
C. 20), is to be considered, after God, under 
God, and with God, as an efficient cause of 
our redemption, because she gave her con- 
sent to the embassy of the Angel and gave 
birth to him who regenerated all men by 
his passion. She is to be regarded as a 
material cause also, because the Holy 
Ghost, with her approval, formed from 
the substance of her body the most sa- 
cred body of Jesus — that body by means 
of the tortures of which our redemption 
was completed, and men acquire once 
more the title of children of God. Alber- 
tus Magnus thus strongly expresses the 
share of the Blessed Virgin in our re- 
demption : Whatever is cause of the 
cause, is cause of that w r hich is produced 
by the cause ; but the Blessed Virgin is 
the cause of her Son, and her Son is the 
cause of all good and all mercy ; there- 
fore his mother is also in her way the 
cause of all good and all mercy. 

By sin man becomes guilty, and God is 
offended. To repair therefore the evils 
of sin, a being was required participating 
in the divine and human nature. It was 
necessary then that God should be con- 
cealed under human form. It was also 
settled in the eternal decrees that the 



108 THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 

second person of the adorable Trinity 
should offer an adequate compensation 
for the sins of men to the Divine Justice, 
by afflictions and torments. But how- 
could the Word have accomplished this 
without human flesh ? By the greatest 
of all miracles, the Word took in Mary 
and from Mary human substance and a 
body subject to suffering ; and having 
united his human nature to the divine, 
in the Divine Person, was able to offer to 
his Father adequate satisfaction. We 
may therefore conclude with St. Thomas 
of Villanova (Serin, de Assiimp.): It is a 
dogma of our faith that Jesus Christ paid 
the price of our redemption. But it can- 
not be called in question, that Mary, by 
becoming his mother, furnished him with 
the means of satisfying the justice of God. 
He is our Redeemer, but from Mary he re- 
ceived the human substance in which he 
redeemed us. Mary is therefore not only 
the mother of God, but as mother of God, 
she cooperated in our redemption. 

II. 

We must reflect, in the second place, 
that, if written in the eternal decrees of 
God that the Divine Word should assume 
human nature for our redemption, this 
was not the limit of his humiliations. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 109 

The humiliations and torments of Christ 
were required — his sweat of blood, the 
blow on his cheek, the cruel scourge, 
the crown of thorns, the hatred of the 
rabble, the bearing of the cross, the naiis 
through the Savior's hands and feet, the 
shedding of the last drop of his most 
precious blood, his agony and death up- 
on the cross. To all the shame and suf- 
ferings of the Son and to his sacrifice on 
Calvary for the redemption of man, Mary 
gave her free and full consent. 

In the opinion of the Fathers, Mary, by 
light derived from the Holy Ghost, com- 
prehended more perfectly than the 
prophets themselves all that they had 
foretold concerning the Savior. The 
devout Rupertus {in Cant. C. 4) intro- 
duces Mary as speaking in the following 
manner : Souls restored to grace by my 
Son, and most dear to myself, do not con- 
fine your attention to that hour of anguish 
when I held in my arms the lifeless body of 
my Son ; for the sword predicted by Si- 
meon was continually transpiercing my 
heart. When I nourished him at my breast, 
I thought of the vinegar and gall which 
would be presented to him in his thirst; 
when I clothed him in his garments, I 
thought of the cords with which he would 
be bound ; when I bore him in my arms, 



110 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



I saw him hanging on the cross ; when he 
was tranquil in sleep, I saw him cold in 
death. All these trials and sorrows Mary 
freely and willingly accepted for the 
benefit of the human race. 

Our redemption was accomplished by 
a sacrifice offered on the altar of the cross. 
This sacrifice was entirely consummated 
by Christ. He was at the same time priest 
and victim. Still Mary may be said to 
have part in it, for Christ, in offering him- 
self to his Father, offered the flesh and 
blood which he had received from Mary 
{St. Eucher. Horn. i. de Nativ. Do?n). 
Mary loved God with perfect love ; in all 
things, therefore, her will was conform- 
able to the will of God ; but it was the 
pleasure of God that his Son should un- 
dergo death on the cross for the salvation 
of man. Christ, therefore, and Mary, one 
in will, offered the same holocaust to the 
Almighty Father. On the summit of 
Golgotha, says Arnoldus Abbot, there 
were two altars — one in the body of Jesus, 
the other in the heart of Mary. And 
whilst Christ immolated himself in body, 
Mary sacrificed herself in heart. The 
writings of the Fathers abound with 
passages in which Mary's participation 
in the work of our redemption is de- 
picted in the most lively colors, and ex- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. \\\ 

hibited as establishing a claim to our ad- 
miration, our veneration, and our warm- 
est gratitude. Mary, then, did lend her 
cooperation in the accomplishment of 
man's redemption. 

ASPIRATION. 

Free us from our chains ; enlighten our 
eyes ; preserve us from evil ; obtain for 
us all that is needful. 

PRACTICE. 

Have instant recourse to Mary in time 
of trial, and bear up courageously in her 
honor. 

LITANY. 

Read Life of Blessed Virgin, by Abbe 
Orsini. 



TWELFTH DAY. 

THE LOVE WHICH WE OWE TO MARY. 

"Thou art all fair, my love, and there is not 
a spot in thee." Cant. iv. 7. 

''THE spirit is rilled with holy admiration, 
* when we hear the spouse of the can- 
ticles addressing the Blessed Virgin in the 



112 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

language applied to her by the Church : 
Thou art all fair, O my love, and there is 
not a spot in thee. Come from Libanus, 
my spouse, come from Libanus, come ; 
thou shalt be crowned from the top of 
Amana, from the top of Sanir and Her- 
mon, from the dens of the lions, from the 
mountains of the leopards. Thou hast 
wounded my heart, my sister, my spouse 
{Cant. iv. 7, 8, 9). Thy cheeks are as the 
bark of a pomegranate (vi. 6). Thy stature 
is like a palm tree, and thy eyes as those 
of doves. Honey and milk are under thy 
tongue, and the smell of thy garments as 
the smell of frankincense (iv. 11). Thou 
art all fair, O my love, and there is not a 
spot in thee. Mary must have indeed been 
adorned with celestial loveliness. The 
Father chose her for his daughter, the 
Son for his mother, and the Holy Ghost 
for his spouse. On the day of her Assump- 
tion, the angels, dazzled by her beauty, 
shouted with joy and exclaimed: Who 
is she that cometh forth as the morn- 
ing rising, fair as the moon, bright as 
the sun (vi. 9) ? The Fathers of the 
Church frequently represent Mary as 
the dawn and the sun, and employ the 
highest colorings of eloquence insetting 
forth her dignity and her loveliness. If 
Mary so charmed the heart of the Father 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 113 

that he chose her for his daughter, and the 
heart of the Word that he destined her for 
his mother, and that of the Holy Ghost, 
that he wished her for his spouse; if she 
excited wonder in the angels, and in every 
age made devout writers enthusiastic in 
the delineation of her magnificent qual- 
ities — we, in order to enkindle in our 
breasts a fervent and enduring love for 
Mary, may well devote our attention to 
the contemplation other exterior and in- 
terior beauty. 

I. 

It is certain that God, in forming the 
human heart, inflamed it with affectionate 
feelings, in order that it might love him 
alone. But it frequently happens that, de- 
luded by the charms of external appear- 
ances, or deceived by some rebellious 
passion representing evil for good, we 
devote our affections to follow display or 
the enticements of appetite, and thus 
bring ruin on our souls and outrage the 
majesty of Almighty God. We naturally 
love that which is presented to us as 
good; but God alone is essentially good; 
he is a vast ocean of all good; he contains 
in himself, in infinite perfection, what- 
ever of good is distributed amongst his 
creatures. God alone therefore is worthy 



114 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

of all love. After God, Mary is first in 
goodness and beauty amongst all rational 
beings, all created things. God, in creat- 
ing the world, made it a wonder of beauty 
and grandeur. He created the heavens 
and ornamented them with the sun, the 
moon and the stars. He created the earth 
and arranged in masterly order the 
mountains, the hills, the valleys, the 
seas, and the rivers. He formed the air 
and ordered the birds to flutter through 
it in their warblings. He peopled the des- 
erts and forests with reptiles and ani- 
mals of every kind. He beautified the 
hills with the peaceful olive and tne 
odoriferous vine. He made the harvests 
wave yellow in the plains. He loaded the 
trees with exquisite fruits. He enamelled 
the prairies with flowers of every 
hue. He enlivened the waters of oceans, 
lakes, and rivers with fishes in countless 
variety. And all things he disposed in 
wonderful and harmonious order, tnat tne 
world might become a delightful sojourn 
for man. But God, in creating Mary, 
formed her as a most especial world for 
himself. She was to be his dwelling place 
for nine months, and from her he took 
flesh and blood. Let who will, says Can- 
isius, contemplate the harmony and 
beauty of the structure of the world, and 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. H5 



admire what is most splendid and magnifi- 
cent in the heavens and on the earth, — 
it all grows dim and disappears in the 
presence of Mary's glory. 

The body of Christ, says Albertus 
Magnus, supernaturally formed by God 
himself, was most beautiful and most 
perfect, as beautiful and perfect as was 
consistent with the condition of a way- 
farer on earth ; in like manner the body 
of the Holy Virgin, designed for the 
human nature of Christ, was as beautiful 
and perfect as was consistent with her 
condition. If Christ was beautiful above 
the sons of men (^.xliv.3), then Mary was 
beautiful above all the daughters of 
Adam. 

If Mary was beautiful by nature, be- 
cause she was to become the tabernacle 
of the Most High, of the Holy of Holies? 
who can express the additional come- 
liness and splendor which she re- 
ceived from grace ? In the Blessed Vir- 
gin there was nothing either in body or 
soul that could blemish the splendor of 
her loveliness ; on the contrary, she was 
formed in body and soul according to the 
design of the sublime counsels of the 
Divine Wisdom. She was preserved from 
whatever could sully her beauty, and en- 
riched with whatever could increase it, 



116 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

The humanity of Christ, by reason of its 
personal union with the divine nature, 
was refulgent with every perfection of 
nature and grace ; his mother, then, 
must have been in due proportion 
adorned with every perfection ; for, after 
the hypostatic union, there can be no 
union more intimate than that between 
mother and son {Dyon. Carth. lib. i. de 
Laud. V.) 

If we unfold the books of the old law, 
we meet in almost every page pictur- 
esque descriptions and charming images 
which shadow forth the splendor of the 
mother of God. Her beauty, interior 
and exterior, is prefigured by all that is 
most lovely in nature. It is mystically 
said of her, that she was exalted like a 
cedar in Libanus, and as a cypress tree 
on Mount Sion ; that she was exalted 
like a palm tree in Cades, and as a rose 
plant in Jericho ; as a fair olive tree in 
the plains, and as a plane tree by the 
water in the streets ; that as the vine she 
brought forth a pleasant odor, and her 
flowers are the fruit of honor and riches 
(Eccl. xxiv.). She was also compared to 
the lily, to the rose, to sweet-smelling 
cinnamon, to the best myrrh, to the sun, 
and to the moon. The fragrance breath- 
ing from Mary, surpassing that of storax, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 117 

and galbanum, and onyx, and aloes, and 
frankincense not cut, attracted the Maker 
of the universe, who determined that she 
should be the mother of the Son. Mary 
was most beautiful above all the illus- 
trious women of the old law, although the 
highest praises are bestowed on their 
beauty. It was said of Judith that there 
was not such another woman upon earth 
in look, in beauty, and in sense of words 
{Judith xi. 19). Esther was exceedingly 
fair and beautiful {Esther ii. 7). Rebecca 
was an exceedingly comely maiden, a 
most beautiful virgin {Gen. xxiv. 16). 
Rachel was well favored and of a beau- 
tiful countenance {Gen. xxiv. 17). But 
Mary excelled them all in beauty and 
loveliness. God himself, as the Church 
understands it, celebrates in the Canticles 
the praises of Mary. Who is she that 
goeth up by the desert, as a pillar of 
smoke of aromatical spices, of myrrh and 
frankincense, and of all the powders of 
the perfumer {Cant. iii. 6) ? Thou art 
beautiful, O my love, sweet and comely as 
Jerusalem (vi. 3). My dove in the clifts 
of the rock, in the hollow places of the 
wall, show me thy face ; let thy voice 
sound in my ears, for thy voice is sweet 
and thy face comely (ii. 14). Turn away 
thy face from me ; for they have made me 



118 



THE 3I0XTH OF OUR LADY. 



flee away (vi. 4). The daughters saw 
thee, and declared thee most blessed ; the 
queens, and they praised thee (vi. 8). 

We learn from St. Paul that when we 
shall become citizens of heaven Jesus 
Christ will reform the body of our low- 
ness, made like to the body of his glorv, 
according to the operation whereby also 
he is able to subdue all things unto him- 
self {Philip. via. 21). Glory then will be 
one of the properties of the bodies of 
the blessed after the general resurrec- 
tion. But as there is one glory of the sun, 
another glory of the moon, and another 
glory of the stars. — for star differeth from 
star in glory, — so also is the resurrection 
of the dead (1 Cor. xv. 41. 42). The 
glory, therefore, of the saints in heaven 
will be different, not in soul only, but 
also in body. This difference will be de- 
termined by the inequality of the merits 
acquired on earth. As the soul of the 
Blessed Virgin enjoys in heaven an un- 
speakable glory responding to her merits 
on earth, how passing great must be the 
splendor, the glory, of her external ap- 
pearance ! 

St. Augustine and St. Bernard teach 
that the beauty of the Blessed Virgin 
was shown in figure to St. John, the 
evangelist, when he saw that sublime 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



119 



queen crowned with twelve stars, hav- 
ing the moon under her feet, and arrayed 
in robes of magnificence formed of the 
rays of the sun {Apoc. xii. i). As there 
is no light on earth to be compared with 
that of the sun, the moon and the stars, 
so there is no beauty in heaven, either 
in saints or angels, to be compared with 
the beauty of the Holy Virgin Mary. In 
her presence all other created beauty 
fades and disappears. God alone is 
beauty in essence, and from him descend 
all the beauty and grace which are found 
in all rational and angelic beings. All 
created beauty may be said to be a mere 
participation of the beauty of Almighty 
God. According to St. Thomas {JIT. P. 9, 
27), the nearer anything approaches its 
principle the more it partakes of the effect 
of the principle ; but Mary is more 
closely allied with God than all saints 
and angels because she is the mother of 
God ; therefore she draws more co- 
piously from the source of all beauty and 
loveliness than saints and angels all 
united. The saints are fair in the sight 
of heaven ; but how much fairer is Mary ! 
The angels and archangels are clothed 
with fairness ; but if we pass in review 
all the celestial choirs in their increasing 
degrees of beauty, we are forced to ex- 



120 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



claim, as each one moves before us, 
More lovely far is Mary ! Let us, then, 
chant with the Church, The holy mother 
of God is exalted above all the choirs of 
angels in the heavenly kingdom. 

II. 

When our admiration is attracted by 
an edifice, which, in all its external parts, 
is a miracle of architectural skill, we are 
naturally led to suppose that the inte- 
rior is glittering with art, elegance, and 
wealth. In like manner, when we con- 
template the loveliness which adorned 
Mary on earth, and the external 'glory 
which surrounds her in heaven, we in- 
stinctively turn our thoughts to the 
beauty of her soul. But all the glory of 
the king's daughter is within (Ps. xliv. 
14). The most brilliant charms of Mary 
are therefore concealed from external 
view. 

Mary was enriched with a plenitude 
of all the treasures of grace, and thus 
made so acceptable in the eyes of God, 
that she was chosen to be his mother. 
Albertus Magnus avers that the Blessed 
Virgin possessed in the highest degree 
all general and special graces granted to 
all creatures ; that she was replenished 



THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY 



121 



with grace in such copiousness that 
it was not imparted more abundantly 
to any created being. For she contained 
within, God, who is grace increate. Ac- 
cording to Suarez. the Blessed Vir- 
gin, from the first instant of ner concep- 
tion and sanctihcation. was loved more 
by the Divine Wore than all angels and 
men. For from that instant he loved 
her as his futu re mother ; and as the grace 
communicated corresponds to the love 
entertained, he bestowed more abundant 
grace upon her who was to be his mother 
than upon ail the saints and angels to- 
gether. Mary, says St. Bernardine. had in 
an eminent manner ner abode in the full 
assembly of saints. For she was digni- 
fied with the faith ot the patriarchs, the 
inspiration of the prophets, the zeal of 
the apostles, the constancy of the mar- 
tyrs, the sanctity of the confessors, the 
chastity of the virgins, the fruitfulness of 
the wedded, the purity of the angels 
{St. Bern, in Verb. Eccl.xxiv. 16). How 
great must be the splendor of the glory 
of Mary's soul in heaven ! St. Bernardine 
teaches that the glory of the Blessed Vir- 
gin is as different from the glory of the 
other blessed as the sun is different from 
the other celestial luminaries; and as the 
other celestial bodies are regulated by 



122 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the sun, so the whole heavenly court is 
ornamented and rejoiced by the glorious 
Virgin Mary. The source of all this glory 
is the divine maternity of Mary. If Mary 
was supremely fair in body and in soul, if 
she was full of grace on earth, and in 
heaven is supereminently resplendent in 
glory, she is the greatest and most lovely 
of all pure creatures, and deserves that we 
should love her with the fondest affection. 

ASPIRATION. 

From all sin deliver us, Holy Virgin 
Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Think frequently of the greatness of 
Mary. 

LITANY. 

Read Reflections on the Litany of Loretto. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. I2'd 

THIRTEENTH DAY. 

HOW TO STUDY MARY, THE MOTHER OF 

GRACE. 

"Arise, O Lord, into thy resting place, thou 
and the ark which thou hast sanctified." Ps. 
cxxi. S. 

THE creator of all things, a most pure 
* spirit, majesty and holiness itself, 
when he determined to dwell with the 
Hebrews in the desert, commanded a 
tabernacle to be constructed for his 
especial abode, whence he would deliver 
his oracles. But listen with what grand- 
eur of art he required it to be constructed 
and with what costliness he adorned it. 
Frame an ark of setim wood, he said to 
Moses, and thou shalt overlay it with the 
purest gold within and without; and 
over it thou shalt make a golden crown 
round about, and four golden rings, which 
thou shalt put at the four corners of the 
ark. Thou shalt make bars also of setim 
wood, and shalt overlay them with gold. 
And thou shalt put them in through the 
rings in the sides of the ark, that it may 
be carried on them. Thou shalt make 
also a propitiatory of the finest gold as 
a covering for the ark. Thou shalt make 



124 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



also two cherubim of beaten gold on the 
two sides of the oracle. Let one cherub 
be on the one side, and the other on the 
other. Let them cover both sides of the 
propitiatory, spreading their wings, and 
covering the oracle, and let them look 
one towards the other, their faces being 
turned towards the propitiatory. Thence 
will I give orders, and will speak to thee 
over the propitiatory, and from the midst 
of the two cherubim, which shall be 
upon the ark of the testimony, all things 
which I will command the children of 
Israel by thee {Exod. xxv.). St. Bernard 
says(dfei?. V. Deip. ii. 9), that the ark of the 
testimony was a figure of the most holy 
mother of God. As the ark of the 
testimony, besides being formed of gold 
and precious wood, contained the objects 
most holy to the Hebrews, so Mary, 
besides being the most beautiful creature 
in Nature, was also the most holy creature 
of grace; for the Almighty lavished all 
the graces upon her and resided in her 
as a king in his kingdom, a father in the 
dwelling place of his family, a pontiff in 
the temple, a spouse in the room of his 
spouse. The Most High created her 
expressly for himself, and adorned her 
with justice, sanctity and every grace, so 
that she addressed her servants in the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LA DY. 12 5 

words of Divine Wisdom-— I am the 
mother of fair love, and of fear, and of 
knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is 
all grace of the way and of the truth ; in 
me is ail hope of life and of virtue. Come 
over to me, all ye that desire me, and 
be filled with my fruits [EccL xxiv. 24). 
For my fruit is better than gold, and the 
precious stone, and my blossoms better 
than choice silver. He that shall find me 
shall find life and shall have salvation 
from the Lord (Prov. viii. 10, 35). Let us 
now examine the reasons for which Mary 
is called the Mother of Grace, and brings 
grace to those who devoutly honor her. 

I. 

The name of Mother of Grace is a name 
pleasant and dear to all the servants of 
Mary; and the countenance of infancy 
and old age, when they repeat it, is 
brightened with a smile of holy joy. The 
name of Mother of Grace is a name of 
glory, which points out her who from all 
eternity was the object of the predilec- 
tion of God above all other creatures, and 
was enriched by him with the fullness of 
all graces and benedictions. The title of 
Mother of Grace is a title of beneficence, 
for it awakens the recollection of favors 
received from Mary, by which the multi- 



12(3 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

plied hardships of earthly exile are alle- 
viated, and recalls to mind the graces 
received from Almighty God through her 
mediation for the persuitand attainment 
of a blessed immortality. When did Mary 
obtain the fullness of grace from which a- 
rises her title of Mother of Grace : In her 
conception, at her birth, and at the time 
when the angel announced to her that she 
was to be the Mother of God. 

In the doctrine of St. Thomas. Almighty 
God distributes his graces to his saints 
with a view to the dignity and office to 
which he destines them :the Blessed Vir- 
gin. destined to be the mother of the Word 
incarnate and queen of all the saints, 
must nave received the fullness of grace 
at the very instant of her immaculate 
conception, According to theologians, 
Mary enjoyed three privileges not shared 
by the other mere creatures. Her wonder- 
ful holiness was original, inamissible, 
and always increasing. The first man 
and the angels were constitute" in sancti- 
fying grace, but with the power of forfeit- 
ing it. as man and many angels did : but 
Mary in her conception was filled with 
holiness which she never forfeited, and, 
by especial privilege could not lose. The 
apostles were confirmed in grace after 
the descent of the Holy Ghost, still they 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 12? 

were not exempt from slight defects; but 
Mary, from the first moment of her ex- 
istence, was unchangeably united with 
God, and was made by grace incapable of 
sinning. The blessed in heaven are free 
from every moral imperfection, and en- 
joy a sanctity that can suffer no change 
and admit no blemish; but their holiness 
receives no increase, whilst the holiness 
of Mary grew greater every day as long as 
she remained on earth. The grace be- 
stowed on Mary the first instant of her 
conception was augmented to the highest 
degree of perfection by the gifts of the 
Holy Ghost, the infused habits of the 
moral and intellectual virtues, the gift 
of prophecy, of miracles, and of the un- 
derstanding of the Scriptures. Why 
mention the use of free will granted to her 
by Almighty power before the natural 
time {St. Bernar • dimes)} Why the privi- 
lege, properly belonging to the angels, of 
thinking and contemplating in a manner 
alto gether spiritual and without depend- 
ence on the senses ? Although the imag- 
ination of Mary was as yet in a kind of 
bondage, and the organs of her body were 
as yet unfit for the full exercise of their 
functions, the soul of Mary was not 
inactive. The mist which darkens the 
minds of other children imprisoned in 



128 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 

the bosom of their mothers, did not ex- 
tinguish the light of her spirit. The 
heart watched, and operating with God, 
overflowed with delights; so that the 
time before birth, which in others passes 
away unproductive, was in Mary a time 
of benediction and merit. 

Mary was enriched with every grace 
at the time of her birth. She was free 
from sin and the effects of sin, and had 
no experience in her own person of that 
fatal law of the members contrary to the 
law of God, through which every man, 
however just, groans under the weight 
of the flesh in constant rebellion against 
the spirit. She was not exposed to those 
combats in which man at one time con- 
quers, at another is conquered; but she 
lived in a delightful peace that was never 
disturbed by the agitation of unruly in- 
clinations. The propensity to evil, which 
is born with us, and harasses us to the 
last hour of life, never had existence in 
Mary. By the operation of grace she 
seemed to be of a nature different from 
ours, being exempt from our infirmities, 
sovereign mistress of all the affections of 
her soul, freed from the slavery of the 
children of Adam, and ever walking before 
God in perfect innocence of heart. All 
the degrees of greatness in Mary had 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



129 



their beginning in her conception, as the 
seed of the tree contains in a certain way 
all the excellence and beauty of the fruit. 
The Blessed Virgin entered the world as 
a sovereign; all others enter it as slaves. 
She came as Queen of the Angels, because 
by means of her the seats were to be oc- 
cupied which had been rendered vacant 
by the rebellion of the evil spirits. She 
came as Queen of the Patriarchs and 
Prophets, because through her the oracles 
of God had their fulfilment. She came 
as Queen of the Apostles, because her 
birth gave commencement to the gospel 
which they were to preach. She came as 
Queen of the Virgins ancl of all the Saints, 
because she was born in the state of 
grace, and in the plenitude of innocence. 

But if we reflect more attentively in 
what circumstance the Blessed Virgin was 
full of the Holy Ghost, and of all his 
gifts of grace, we shall discover that 
it was at the moment of her annunciation, 
when she became the mother of the Eter- 
nal Word. Hail, said the angel to Mary 
on the part of God, Hail, full of grace, for 
the Lord dwells with thee, and thou art 
blessed with every blessing, above all the 
women of all ages. Fear not illusion or 
deception, for thou hast found grace be- 
fore God. Thou shalt conceive and bring 



130 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

forth the Redeemer of the world, and 
thou shalt call his name Jesus. Unsullied 
thy virginity shall remain ; for the Holy 
Ghost shall come upon thee, and the 
power of the Most High shall over- 
shadow thee {Luke i. 38). We learn here 
from the Gospel that Mary, being a vir- 
gin, became a mother without prejudice 
to her virginal honor, and that she be- 
came the mother of the Son of God. That 
a virgin should become a mother, and the 
mother of God, is a miracle so great that 
a greater cannot have place in the eternal 
operations of the Almighty (5/. Bernar- 
dine, Serm. 61: St. Aug. Epist. 3 ad Volus). 
Of the only-begotten Son of God the Vir- 
gin Mary is mother; a worthy mother of a 
worthy son, an immaculate mother of a 
holy son ; a unique mother of a unique 
son. No other only-begotten can come 
upon the earth ; and no other virgin can 
be mother of the only-begotten {Orzg. 
Serm. 2). No other creature can contract 
so strict an affinity with God as the Bless- 
ed Virgin, because the mother and the son 
have the same flesh — one common sub- 
stance. The flesh of Christ, says St. Au- 
gustine {Serm de B. V. M.), is the flesh of 
Mary. As long as a son, says St. Thomas, 
is in the bosom of his mother, he is not 
separated from her. but forms a part of her 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 131 

by a tie of nature, as the fruit hanging 
from the tree is reputed a part of the tree 
itself. No more intimate union after the 
hypostatic can be conceived than that of 
Mary with her son. By this union she ap- 
proached the confines of Divinity. The 
three persons of the most Holy Trinity, 
says St. Bernard (Serm. de B. M. Dezp), 
concurred to enrich Mary with their gifts 
and treasures. The Father imparted to her 
the power to become a mother, the Son 
wisdom to enlighten her, the Holy Ghost 
the grace of all virtues. The Father con- 
ferred upon her the authority against sin, 
the Son humility against the world, the 
Holy Ghost charity towards God and the 
neighbor. The Father gave to Mary the 
contemplation of heavenly things, the 
Son instructed her to operate virtuously, 
the Holy Ghost raised her to heaven on 
the wings of faith. The three persons of 
the most Holy Trinity, to express much 
in few words, bestowed upon Mary the 
purity of the angels, the charity of the 
apostles, the fortitude of the martyrs, 
the sanctity of the confessors, the wisdom 
of the doctors, the abstinence of the an- 
chorites, the modesty of the religious, the 
devotion of the priests, the integrity of 
the virgins, the continence of the widows, 
and the fruitfulness of the wedded. Mary, 



132 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

therefore, is mother of grace, because she 
is mother of the Author of Grace, be- 
cause she was pleasing to God in the ex- 
.ercise of every virtue ; and because she 
received in superabundance, above an- 
gels and saints, the plenitude of all 
graces. 

II. 

The Angelic Doctor teaches us that an- 
other species of fulness of grace is found 
in Mary, which is an advantage to all 
men, and especially of encouragement to 
sinners and consolation to the afflicted. 
We wonder, he says (Op. 8), that in each 
saint there is grace sufficient for the salva- 
tion of many, but our wonder is exceed- 
ingly great when we reflect that there is in 
Christ and in the Virgin grace sufficient 
for the salvation of all men. God, being 
about to rescue the human race from the 
slavery of Satan and sin, committed the 
whole price of redemption to Mary. She, 
according to the Fathers, furnished the 
beginning of salvation and grace, and is 
to be considered as a cause of salvation 
for having conceived the Author of grace 
and given a Redeemer to the world (5/. 
Bernardine). The Lord was with Mary, 
and Mary was with the Lord, cooperating 
in the same labor and in the same work 



THE M0N1H OF OUR LADY. 133 

of redemption. (St. Bernar dine, ibid \. 1). 
We see Mary at the manger, at the temple, 
in Egypt, in Galilee, in Jerusalem, in the 
solitudes, in the deserts, alvvayswith Jesus. 
On that last day of anguish and sorrow, 
when the redemption of the human race 
was completed at the price of infinite tor- 
ture, Mary followed faith fully the foot steps 
of her Son ; and when he hung in agony 
between heaven andearth,she stood in ag- 
ony at the foot of the cross. Every afflic- 
tion of her Son waked a corresponding af- 
fliction in her motherly heart. There were 
two altarsonGolgotha,the one in the heart 
of Mary, the other in the body of Jesus, 
Jesus immolated his flesh, Mary her soul, for 
the benefit of sinners. Jesus, seeing the 
sacrifice of love which Mary was offering 
in our behalf, although on the point of 
breathing forth his soul, arouses himself, 
and says to John: Beloved disciple, dost 
thou see the affliction of my mother ? For 
thee also she suffers ; take her as a mother; 
as such I give her to thee (John xix. 27). 

If Mary conceived and gave birth to 
the Author of grace ; if she cooperated in 
the work of our redemption ; if she was 
replenished with all graces for the bene- 
fit of men; if she was given to us as a 
mother by the Redeemer himself on Cal- 
vary ; shall we not esteem her as a mother 



134 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



who is the bearer of grace to her chil- 
dren ? From the gospel it is evident that 
she is such a mother. Jesus and Mary 
were present at the marriage in Galilee. 
Mary perceived that the wine had failed, 
and compassionating the confusion of the 
spouses, she said to Jesus, They have no 
wine. And Jesus saith to her, Woman, 
what is that to me and thee ? My hour is 
not yet come {John it. 34.). Notwithstand- 
ing thisreply, the application of Mary 
proved successful, and Jesus changed wa- 
ter to wine to supply the deficiency. The 
first miracle of JesusChrist was performed 
at the intercession of his mother. This 
shows what confidence we should repose 
in the kindness of our good mother. The 
Eternal Father wills that through her we 
should receive every good thing, since he 
willed that through her we should receive 
his only-begotten Son, in whom he has 
given us all things. The loving zeal of 
this mother in favor of her children was 
prefigured in the history of Esther. As- 
suerus, inflamed with anger against the 
Hebrews, had signed the decree of exter- 
mination, commanding that all the He- 
brews in his kingdom should be put to 
death on the same day — men and women, 
old and young. But Esther, who before 
had found favor before the king, and had 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 135 

been crowned his queen, changed by her 
entreaties the heart of Assuerus, and pre- 
vailed upon him to recall the fatal decree. 
Mary exerts herself in the same manner 
in our behalf, and our sorrow is turned 
into joy. Her kindness toward the sor- 
rowing was great whilst she was in her 
pilgrimage on earth, but far greater is it 
now that she is reigning in heaven. 
Knowing our miseries better now, she 
obtains grace for us more abundantly. 
As the brilliancy of the sun exceeds that 
of the moon, so the compassion of Mary 
exceeds the compassion which she felt 
for us on earth. And as the sun sends 
down its rays upon wealthy and needy, 
Mary showers down her favors upon just 
men and sinners — upon. the just to justify 
them still, and upon the sinners to en- 
lighten them to the life of grace. Who 
could enumerate the graces bestowed by 
the mother of grace? As the raindrops 
which descend to refresh and fertilize the 
earth are beyond the power of enumera- 
tion, so countless are the graces which 
Mary causes to descend upon the chil- 
dren of men. This is testified by the mul- 
titudes who hurry to her sanctuaries, the 
votive tablets that hang around her altars, 
the lights that are always burning before 
her images. 



136 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ASPIRATION. 

Mary, Mother of Grace, Mother of 
Mercy, defend us from our enemies, and 
receive us at the hour of death. 

PRACTICE. 

Perform some spiritual or corporal 
work of mercy in honor of the Blessed 
Virgin. 

LITANY. 

Read Mary, Star of the Sea, 



FOURTEENTH DAY. 

THE VIRGINITY OF MARY. 

"The Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire 
out of the midst of a bush ; and he saw that the 
bush was on rire, and was not burnt." Exod.\\\. 2. 

THE Hebrews were groaning under a 
most cruel slavery in the land of Egypt, 
and Moses, disregarding the riches of the 
Pharaos, chose rather to suffer persecu- 
tion with the people of God, esteeming 
the approach of Christ greater riches 
than the treasure of the Egyptians (Heb. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 137 

ix. 25). Reduced to poverty, slighted, and 
suspected, not only by the Egyptians, 
but by his own brethren, he fled secretly 
into the arid deserts of Arabia, and finally 
fixed his abode in the land of Madian. 
There he awaited with resignation the in- 
terference of Divine Mercy in favor of 
the Hebrews, and employed himself in 
tending the flocks of Jethro, his father- 
in-law. Having conducted the flocks in- 
to the interior of the desert and arrived 
at the mountain of God, Horeb, he wit- 
nessed an extraordinary spectacle. He 
beheld at a distance a bush enveloped 
in flames, and still no portion of it was 
consumed. When he went forward to 
see why the bush was not burnt, he heard 
the voice of the Lord, who said to him: 
Come not nigh hither ; put off the shoes 
from thy feet ; for the place whereon 
thou standest is holy ground {Exod. iii. 8). 
He afterwards disclosed to him his in- 
tention of delivering his people from the 
tyranny of the Egyptians ; and informed 
him that he was to be the instrument by 
means of which their deliverance was to 
be accomplished. But the bush that 
burned without being consumed, what 
hidden signification has it, and of what 
was it a symbol ? The Church recognizes 
in that burning bush the praiseworthy 



138 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

virginity of Mary, (in Off. Purify. And 
virginity is indeed commendable, and to 
be extolled to the skies with praises, for it 
is written in the Apocalypse that virgins 
havea separate place assigned to them be- 
fore the throne of the lamb. Why do we 
call Mary the Queen of the Virgins ? The 
development of the reasons will increase 
our devotion for her, and excite us to 
love so fair a virtue. 

I. 

Virginal purity is a moral virtue which 
rejects every species of carnal delight. 
This divine virtue possesses charms so 
powerful that God leaves heaven for earth 
to converse with virgins, the inseparable 
companions of the Lamb, the most illus- 
trious portion of the flock of the Lord, 
and the richest treasure of the Church. 
The innocent soul is a worthy temple of 
God on earth, and with its virginal purity 
it holds secure the gifts of grace and of 
the Holy Ghost. Grace always present re- 
moves all alluring thoughts which might 
give food to concupiscence and not 
only prevents the slightest glimmering of 
this infernal fire from reaching the will, 
but diligently watches over the appetite 
itself. The excellence of the virtue of 
virginity is such, that nothing else causes 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



139 



either soul or body to approach so 
nearly that state of felicity to which we 
shall be exalted, that life which, after the 
general resurrection, we shall lead in 
heaven, rescued from death, not subject 
to corruption, incorruptible and immor- 
tal. This felicity appears to be indicated 
by Christ when he says that in the res- 
urrection they shall neither marry nor be 
given in marriage, but shall be as the 
angels of God in heaven (Matt. xxii. 30). 
He, therefore, who remains in a state of 
celibacy, and preserves his heart immac- 
ulate by purity of mind and body, makes 
the nearest approach in his life on earth 
to the life of glory in heaven. St. Basil 
affirms that virginity renders man similar 
to the incorruptible God (Lib. de Virg.). 

Mary holds the first place in virginity, 
not only amongst men, but even amongst 
angels. Hence she is saluted by the 
Church as Mother most pure, Queen of 
Virgins. The virginal purity of Mary ex- 
cels in perfection that of the angels, be- 
cause they possess it by nature, Mary by 
grace. In the angels it is of necessity, 
in Mary it proceeds from free will. The 
angels preserve it in a nature inaccessible 
to concupiscence, Mary in a nature sur- 
rounded by frailty. Mary far surpasses 
in virginity all creatures of a nature in- 



\40 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ferior to the angels, because the resolu- 
tion to preserve it intact was in her more 
firm, more noble, more perfect. Mary 
was ennobled with all the graces of the 
patriarchs, the prophets, the apostles, the 
martyrs, the confessors, the virgins, and 
all the other saints ; she is like the sea, 
that gathers into its bosom all the waters 
of the rivers ; she was able, consequently, 
to form more perfect acts of love of God, 
Her virginity, therefore, excelled in per- 
fection the virginity of all the saints. 
Mary confirmed her resolution to observe 
virginity by a perpetual vow, and was 
free from concupiscence, which so 
fiercely opposes its observance. She not 
only never experienced the rebellion of 
nature, but breathed around such a fra- 
grance of innocence, that all who ap- 
proached her were inflamed with love of 
purity. Her resolution was therefore 
more firm and efficacious than the reso- 
lution of all others. It was more noble 
too, because it prepared her for the dig- 
nity of Mother of God. 

Mary is Queen of Virgins. Her vir- 
ginity then, must be embellished with 
qualities altogether new to the world. 
What more unheard of than virginity and 
motherhood united in the same person! 
What more new than that a most pure- 



THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 141 

Virgin, not knowing man, should give 
birth to a son! That a Virgin should be- 
come a mother by the operation of the 
Holy Ghost! That a virgin, free from what 
is common to all other mothers, should, 
become the mother of God! The decis- 
ions of councils in this point (Late)'. Sub. 
Mart. V \ Romcui.an. 389. Mediolan. Xicaen. 
etc.). the doctrine of the Church, the teach- 
ing of the Fathers and the Divines, are 
familiar to every Catholic. All proclaim 
that Mary was a virgin when she con- 
ceived, a virgin when she brought forth 
her son, a virgin forever after (5/. Aug. de 
Cat.Rud.c. 22). The Church chants the 
praises of Mary as a virgin in a manner 
altogether peculiar and unknown to 
other virgins— Virgo sin'gularis. And 
does not she alone wear the diadem of 
the mother of the King of kings, by 
which she claims dominion over angels 
and saints? Did either nature or grace 
ever produce a virgin like Mary ? Mary 
is most holy amongst the holy, most pure 
amongst the pure, a celestial wonder, 
the mirror of virtues, the miracle of the 
world, the joy of heaven and earth. She 
alone is virgin and mother; virgin with- 
out example and without equal ; mother 
of the author of grace. She is virgin in 
body, in mind, in look, in thought, in feel- 



142 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ings, in word, and in work. As the eagle 
soars above all the feathered tribe, the 
Virgin Mary soars above all other vir- 
gins. Almighty God himself, in various 
parts of scriptures, has exhibited under 
beautiful images the singular excellence 
of the virginity of Mary. She is the virgin 
rose that opens its purple-tinted bosom to 
the kindly influence of the heavenly dew ; 
she is the lily amongst thorns that diffuses 
around an aroma of fragrance; she is the 
fair and innocent dove that reflects all the 
various colors of light in presence of the 
sun; she is the immortal palm, the incor- 
ruptible cedar, the triumphant laurel, the 
turpentine tree with spreading branches 
and dense foliage. Of her were figures, 
the terrestrial paradise, the tree of life, 
the well enclosed garden, the sealed foun- 
tain, the mirror without blemish, the 
ark of Noe and of the covenant, the little 
cloud seen by Elias, the fleece of Gideon, 
the tabernacle and the temple. She was 
the closed gate through which was to 
pass, without its being opened, the God 
made man, the consoler of the afflicted, 
the hope of Israel, the Savior of the 
human race, the desire of all just souls; he 
was to throw open the gates of heaven 
closed by sin, and to fill with souls re- 
deemed by himself the seats left vacant 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



143 



by the rebellion of Lucifer. These and 
numberless others were the symbols 
which foreshadowed that illustrious 
maiden, who was chosen to be the 
mother of God without suffering the 
slightest detriment to her virginal pur- 
ity. 

Besides the symbols, there are innu- 
merable passages in scripture which al- 
lude to the virginity of Mary, lsaias 
clearly foretells that the Savior should 
be born of a virgin. Behold a virgin 
shall conceive and shall bear a son, and 
his name shall be called Emmanual {Is. 
vii. 14). Again he said, There shall come 
forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a 
flower shall rise up out of his root. And 
the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him 
(Is, xi. 1, 2). The land that was desolate 
and impassable shall be glad ; the wilder- 
ness shall rejoice, and flourish like the 
lily. It shall bud forth and blossom, and 
shall rejoice with joy and praise; the 
glory of Libanus is given to it ; the beauty 
of Carmel and Saron : they shall see the 
glory of the Lord, and the beauty of our 
God (Is. xxxv. 1, 2). But whilst he de- 
scribed the blessings of redemption, he 
foreknew 7 that Christ would be born of a 
virgin mother; and the honor of the son 
redounds to the honor of the mother. 



144 THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 

When the beauty of a flower is admired, 
the stem which produced it is praised ; 
when the fruits of a tree are carefully 
watched and gathered, by the very act 
the good qualities of the tree itself, and 
the seed from which it arose, are com- 
mended. God, moreover, in the mystic 
explanation of the Church, called her all 
fair, and without stain of sin to tarnish 
her virginal innocence. Thou art all fair, 
O my love, and there is no spot in thee 
(Cant. iv. 6). Fair as the moon, bright as 
the sun (Cant. vi. 9). As there is no heav- 
enly body more beautiful than the sun 
and the moon, so there is no creature 
more passing fair than the spotless Vir- 
gin Mary. 

II. 

But the claims of Mary to the title of 
Oueen of Virgins are not yet exhausted. 
She consecrated her body to God by a 
vow of perpetual virginity. This is the 
opinion of St. Augustine, St. Bernard, St. 
Ildefonsus, and all the doctors of the 
Church. The holy virgin was not ignor- 
ant that herself and all other creatures 
belonged entirely to God, because from 
him they derived their being; and she 
wished to consecrate herself solemnly to 
him in the presence of angels and men. on 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 145 

the day of her presentation in the temple, 
when she was only three years of age. 
This resolution was inspired by the holy 
Ghost, and she executed it with all the 
devotion and fervor of her soul. She 
loved God with her whole heart and her 
whole strength, and her only thought 
was to give him pleasure. She knew also 
that the merit of virginity is increased 
by the obligation of a vow to maintain it; 
and she chose the part which was more 
perfect, more secure, and more glorious 
to the Lord. Then were verified in her 
the words of the Holy Ghost, by whom she 
was already regarded as a spouse: — My 
sister, my spouse, is a garden enclosed, a 
fountain -sealed up {Ca?it. iv. 12). The 
Holy Spirit repeated twice the words, " a 
garden enclosed," because she was 
equally pure in body and soul; and to 
place her virginity in security, she reared 
around it, by means of a perpetual vow, a 
powerful barrier, in order to break all 
the assaults of the unclean spirit of the 
abyss; and she strengthened this defence 
by intrusting it to the guardianship of 
humility, modesty, silence, and temper- 
ance. St. Augustine, and after him the 
Fathers and theologians, wishing to prove 
that the Blessed Virgin had consecrated 
her virginity to God by vow, bring for- 



146 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ward her words to the angel, when he 
announced to her that she should be the 
mother of the Word Incarnate. How 
shall this be done, because I know not 
man {Luke i. 34)? Mary by these w> res 
did not express a doubt that the mystery 
foretold by the angel would have its 
accomplishment; she wished merely to be 
informed of the manner in which it was 
to be accomplished, bearing in mind the 
vow of perpetual virginity which she had 
made from her earliest days. Her ques- 
tion to the angel is an evident proof 
that she had dedicated herself to God in 
soul and in body. If she was espoused 
to Joseph this was not for the loss, but 
for the protection, of her virginity. 

Some, perhaps, betore Mary, had the 
will to preserve the fair virtue of virgin- 
ity, as Elias. Eliseus. feremias. and 
Daniel; but before her no one consecrated 
it to God. and bound the will forever bv 
a perpetual vow. Under the old cove- 
nant a vow of virginity, or rather sterility, 
a necessary consequence of it. was viewed 
as a reproach, a disgrace, and a curse to 
a family {Ex. xxiii. 561, When Rachel gave 
birth to Joseph, she exclaimed. God hath 
taken away my reproach (Gen. xxx. 231! 
Wnen the daughter of Jepthe learned 
from her father that she was to be offered 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



147 



in sacrifice., in fulfilment of a vow which 
he had made to the Lorn, she said to him; 
My Father, if thou hast opened thy mouth 
to the Lord, do unto me whatsoever thou 
hast promised. Grant me only this 
which I desire: Let me go. that I may go 
about the mountains, and may bewail 
my virginity with my companions 
{Judges xi. 36). Besides the disgrace of 
celibacy, the desire of giving birth to the 
Savior of the world had seized upon the 
hearts of all Hebrew maidens. In the 
new testament as soon as Mary unfolded 
the snow-white standard of virginity, 
innumerablebands ofvirgins immediately 
rallied around her. In the first bloom 
of their age they consecrated their hearts 
to God. andunderthe triumphant banner 
of the Virgin, courageously and success- 
fully combated against the devil and the 
flesh. Th us were fulfilled the words of 
the prophet when he sang to the sound 
of his golden harp. After her shall 
virgins be brought to the king; her 
neighbors shall be brought to thee. 
They shall be brought into the temple 
of the King [Ps. xliv.14). Mary is there- 
fore Queen of Virgins, because she was 
the first to bind herself by perpetual vow 
to maintain unsullied the fair and angelic 
virtue of virginity. 



148 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ASPIRATION. 

From the spirit of uncleanness, deliver 
us, O Virgin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Keep a strict watch over all your senses, 
especially your eyes. 

LITANY. 

Consult Angelus Domini, illustrated in Art. 



FIFTEENTH DAY. 

MARY, MOTHER OF CHASTITY. 

"This gate shall be shut ; it shall not be opened ; 
and no man shall pass through it ; because the 
Lord the God of Israel hath entered by it." 
Ezech. xliv. 2. 

WHILST Jeremias was in Jerusalem 
Ezechiel was in Babylon ; and both 
spoke with prophetic spirit and made 
manifest the designs of God. Ezechiel 
in the land of his exile often wandered 
along the banks of the river Chobar, as 
being a place of silence and retirement 
and well suited for religious meditation. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 149 

There God revealed to him the chas- 
tisement with which he intended to visit 
the wickedness of the Hebrews, the de- 
struction of Jerusalem and of the tem- 
ple, the punishments which he designed 
to inflict upon the nations bordering up- 
on Judea, upon the Chaldeans them- 
selves and the haughty Babylon. He re- 
vealed to him also the happy return of 
the Hebrews to their country, the restor- 
ation of Jerusalem and of the temple, 
and the new alliance which he would con- 
tract with his repentant people. In a 
vision Ezechiel was conveyed in spirit to 
) erusalem, and God by means of an angel 
showed him the measurements and the 
design of the grand fabric of the new tem- 
ple. He pointed out to him, as if it were 
already built, the exterior gate of the 
sanctuary turned towards the east ; it 
was closed, and Ezechiel saw the glory 
of the God of Israel enter by it. and the 
Lord said to him: This gate shall be 
shut ; it shall not be opened ; and no 
man shall pass through it, because the 
Lord the God of Israel hath entered by it. 
The Fathers of the Church and all Cath- 
olic interpreters recognize in that gate a 
beautiful figure of the Blessed Virgin, 
in whose bosom the Divine Word took 
upon himself human nature without im- 



150 the month of our lady. 

pairing her virginity either in his con- 
ception or in his birth. What signifies, 
says St. Augustine, the closed door in 
the house of the Lord, if not that Mary 
shall remain always inviolate? What 
signify those words, And no man shall 
pass through it, if not the purity of 
Joseph ? Of what is it a symbol that God 
alone passes through it, if not of the di- 
vine conception operated by the power 
of the Holy Ghost ? What means it that 
this gate shall be closed forever, if not 
that Mary was a virgin before she gave 
birth to her Son, a virgin when she gave 
birth to him, and a virgin ever after ? 
(Serm. de Nat. Dom.) It is easy now to un- 
derstand that Mary is Mother of Chastity. 
Let us now consider more attentively the 
peculiar excellence of the chastity of Mary. 

I. 

Chastity is a most sublime virtue, by 
which both soul and body are preserved 
pure and unsullied. According to the 
Angelic Doctor(2. 2. 9. 151. a. i.),the virtue 
of chastity derives its name from the Lat- 
in word castigare, to chastise ; because by 
it the concupiscence of the flesh is chas- 
tisedand curbed inorder tosubject lttothe 
yokeof reason. We attribute to Mary the 
denomination of most chaste, because she 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 151 

was free from the passion contrary to 
chastity, and because she maintained her 
purity in its fullest integrity above every 
otner creature. 

Every object that we meet with in this 
world hurries us along to sin and perdi- 
tion ; but what we have most to fear is 
the implacable enemy that lies concealed 
within ourselves, like the treacherous ser- 
pent which hides itself under the herbage 
in order to strike the heel of the un- 
guarded traveler. St. Paul, the apostle, 
speaking from experience, thus com- 
plains: I see another law in my mem- 
bers, righting against the law of my mind, 
and captivating me in the law of sin that 
is in my members. Unhappy man that 
I am! Who shall deliver me from the 
body of this death ? The grace of God 
by Jesus Christ our Lord {Rom. vii. 26). 
These expressions prove clearly that the 
great apostle, although called to the apos- 
tleship by the most extraordinary grace, 
was subject to the severest assaults of 
sense, and that his soul was tormented 
by rebellious concupiscence. Human na- 
ture in the first man, having fallen and 
been vitiated by sin, the penalty of this 
sin descended to all men ; so that nature 
itself, which was created good and up- 
right by Almighty God, is taken for the 



152 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

fault and infirmity of corrupt nature, be- 
cause its inclinations, if left to them- 
selves, lead to evil and the things of earth. 
For that small portion of power which 
remained in nature is as a spark concealed 
beneath the ashes {Im. Christi i, y,c. 41). 
Our body produces briers and thorns ; 
hence so many stings of temptation, and 
goadings of foul imaginations, which as- 
sail and frequently ruin chastity. But the 
Virgin, the most blessed mother of God, 
w r as exempt from every incitement to sin, 
from every inclination contrary to reason. 
She never felt in her heart, as we do, the 
tumultuous whirlpool of numerous pas- 
sions producing blindness by their wild 
commotion. She never experienced the 
law of the flesh, so contrary to the law 
of the Spirit. Preserved from original 
sin, she was free from its effects and was 
undisturbed by concupiscence, so de- 
structive to the soul of man. The Lord 
dwelt in the heart of Mary, and his place 
was in peace {Ps. lxxv. 2). 

Mary, however, during her whole life, 
employed the most active vigilance in 
guarding the inestimable treasure which 
she possessed. Although unknown to 
the infirmities of corrupt nature, she 
maintained as much watchfulness as if 
in everything and everywhere she had 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



153 



had something to fear, something to 
dread. When a child of three years, she 
retired to the temple and was reared with- 
in its sacred precincts ; she grew up in the 
exercise of the most eminent virtues ; she 
lived apart from the world in silence and 
solitude; she was an utter stranger to 
the vanity, the luxury, the pomps and 
pleasures, which charm and enslave the 
hearts of the worldly minded. And she 
thus left a memorable example in con- 
demnation of those who heedlessly ex- 
pose the treasure of purity to so many 
manifest dangers. Mary, moreover, to 
keep farther from herself every enemy 
of the purity of her heart, cultivated as- 
siduously the virtues of humility, mod- 
esty, temperance, diligence, silence, and 
devout contemplation — fair and august 
daughters of heaven ; :-nd they shielded 
her against all tnose forces which the 
world, the flesh, and the spirits of dark- 
ness marshal in battle to overwhelm our 
virtue. St. Ambrose very well says of 
Mary, that she was a virgin not only in 
body but in mind ; that she was humble 
in heart, grave in words, piudent in spirit, 
little inclined to speak, diligent in per- 
suing the Holy Scriptures and in avoid- 
ing every danger that she might devote 
herself wholly to God. 



154 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



But the most excellent and singular 
prerogative of the chastity of Mary was, 
that she not only never experienced the 
rebellion of concupiscence, but inspired 
all who beheld her with love for angelic 
purity. So great was the grace of the 
Virgin, says St. Ambrose {de Instit. Vzrg.), 
that she not only maintained her own 
purity in all its matchless dignity, but in- 
fused into those who beheld her, esteem 
and love for chastity. The grace of sanc- 
tification, says St. Thomas (3 Dist.p. 3, 
art, 1, ad 2), not only suppressed illicit 
concupiscence in the Virgin, but also ex- 
erted its efficacy in others ; so that al- 
though she was exceedingly graceful and 
beautiful no one could regard her with 
unlawful feeling. As in the desert those 
who had been bitten by serpents were 
restored to health by looking upon the 
brazen serpent erected by Moses, sc those 
who were suffering from the stings of car- 
nal love were refreshed and tranquillized 
by lifting their eyes to the purity of 
Mary's countenance : sinful love fled in 
affright before her presence. 

Mary was a virgin in the three principal 
epochs of her life, — before she became a 
mother, when she became a mother, and 
after she became a mother. That she 
was a virgin before she became a mother 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



155 



is apparent from her words to the angel 
— How shall this be done, because I know 
not man? This objection, the Fathers 
teach, alluded to the vow of perpetual 
virginity which she had made at her pres- 
entation in the temple of Jerusalem. 
The objection would lose all its force had 
she not been already under obligation 
never to know man. Up to that time no 
maidens had been found to bind them- 
selves to the preservation of virginity; 
either because they had not sufficiently 
considered its worth and beauty, or 
rather because they believed that vir- 
ginity could not be severed from sterility 
and could not consequently be observed 
without reproach among the women of 
Israel. But the most holy Virgin, whether 
from humility, deeming herself unworthy 
to be the mother of the Savior, or from 
some other motive, was the first to con- 
secrate to God by vow this virtue so ac- 
ceptable in his sight, and thus devote 
herself body and soul, in sacrifice to him 
who is the sovereign giver of all good 
and perfect gifts. Mary, to use the phrase 
of the prophet (Zach. ix. 17), caused vir- 
gins to spring forth in two ways ; because 
she inspired purity into all who beheld 
her, and because an immense multitude 
of both sexes, led on by her example, 



156 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



vowed or observed the angelic virtue of 
chastity. These are the reasons why the 
Church in her liturgy celebrates the 
mother of God as mother most pure, 
Queen of Virgins. But the most singu- 
lar feature in the virginity of Mary is 
that she conceived and brought forth 
the Savior of the world without detri- 
ment to her virginal purity. The words 
of the angel to Mary convince us of this 
greatest of all miracles. The Holy Ghost 
shall come upon thee, and the power of 
the Most High shall overshadow thee. 
And therefore also the Holy which shall 
be born of thee shall be called the Son of 
God ; and no word shall be impossible 
with God {Luke i). St. Chrysologus af- 
firms, that when Mary conceived, and 
when she gave birth to her Son, her pur- 
ity increased, her chastity was augment- 
ed, her integrity was strengthened, and 
her virginity confirmed {Serin. 122). 
Hence the Church salutes Mary as Moth- 
er most chaste, Mother inviolate. Mary 
was a virgin after she became a mother, 
because throughout her life she pre- 
served that fairest of virtues which she 
had dedicated to God in the dawn of her 
days. It is true that she was espoused to 
Joseph, but their wedlock was altogether 
spiritual, celestial, and holy. In the doc- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 157 

trine of the Fathers of the Church, Joseph 
was a virgin as well as Mary. If the Sav- 
ior on the cross would not recommend 
his virgin mother to any but the then vir- 
gin Apostle, how could he have suffered 
that her spouse should be other than a 
virgin (St. Thorn, in C. I. Ep. ad Gal)} It 
was the wisdom of the will of God that 
she who had been chosen to be the moth- 
er of the Redeemer, should be espoused 
to the most just, the most pure, the most 
holy man on earth. We learn from the 
Gospel that the chaste Joseph wished to 
put away his spouse secretly, but was en- 
couraged by the angel to retain her, be- 
cause she had conceived by the Holy 
Ghost (Matt. \. 20). Then Mother for- 
ever undeflled is the Holy Virgin Mary. 

II. 

AH that has been said of the virginity 
of Mary is clearly signified in the books 
of the old law. The bush seen by Moses 
in the Arabian desert which burned with- 
out being consumed, the Church assures 
us was a figure of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary, whose virginity always retained its 
original integrity. The fleece of Gideon, 
as St. Bernard teaches {Horn. 2. sup. Mis- 
sus est), was a symbol of the perfect in- 



158 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



tegrity of Mary, although she gave flesh 
to the Divine Word. When Elias was 
in prayer on Mount Carmel, his servant 
saw a little cloud arise out of the sea like 
a man's foot (3 Kings xviii. 44). This lit- 
tle cloud prefigured the virgin mother of 
God, who arose indeed from the sea of 
this world, but ascended far above the 
world in her exemption from all the car- 
nal infirmities of human nature. Isaias, 
filled with the spirit of God, caught a 
glimpse of Mary, and exclaimed : Behold 
a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, 
and his name shall be called Emmanuel 
(vii. 14). This prophecy was renewed by 
him under another symbol, when he said : 
There shall come forth a rod out of the 
root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up 
out of his root. And the Spirit of the 
Lord shall rest upon him (xi. 1). This 
rod is the Virgin Mary, and this flower is 
Christ. What indicates the rod of Aaron, 
which budded and bloomed blossoms, and 
bore fruit {Numb. xvii. 8), unless the 
Blessed Virgin Mary, who conceived and 
brought forth her son without prejudice 
to her virginity? And the eyes of the 
innocent dove, the flowers of the valleys, 
the lily among thorns, the rose of Jericho, 
the enclosed garden, the fountain sealed 
up, — what are they but symbols of the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 159 



ever inviolate purity and chastity of the 
glorious Virgin Mary? 

Why appeal on this subject to Fathers 
and Councils of the Church ? They speak 
with one voice. The Apostles' Creed 
and the Nicene declare that the Divine 
Lord was conceived by the Holy Ghost 
of the Virgin Mary. The Councils of 
Lateran and Chalcedon define the same, 
and pronounce anathema against any one 
who should dare to call in question the 
singular chastity of Mary. When Christ 
was born, says St. Gregory of Nyssa 
{Orat. de Nat. Ckrzsti), he was laid in the 
manger ; and the mother, who remained 
an unblemished virgin, embraced her son. 
Christ was born of a mother, says St. 
Augustine {de Cat. Rud. c. 22), who con- 
ceived although she knew not man, and 
who continued always inviolate. A vir- 
gin, she conceived ; a virgin, she gave 
birth to her Son ; a virgin, she died. 
Mary, we may conclude, prized most 
highly and preserved most singularly, 
beyond all other women, the virtue of 
chastity. She is, therefore, to be honored 
as the Mother of Chastity. 

ASPIRATION. 

Obtain for me purity of mind and body, 
spotless Virgin Mary. 



160 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

PRACTICE. 

Entreat Mary every day to number you 
amongst her faithful servants. 

LITANY. 

Read A Crown for Our Queen, by Rev. 
Abram J. Ryan. 



SIXTEENTH DAY. 

HOLINESS OF MARY. 

'The king commanded that they should bring 
great stones, costly stones, for the foundation of 
the temple." 3 Kings v. 17. 

SOLOMON, in compliance with his own 
promises and those of his father, under- 
took to build a temple to the living God; 
the temple when completed was a prodigy 
of magnificence and art. The highest 
power of architecture was displayed in 
the construction of the work, and all its 
parts were conspicuous for elegance of 
design and skill of execution. The mate- 
rials were of the richest kind. Precious 
woods and silver and gold, elaborately 
wrought and disposed with consummate 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



161 



taste, were scattered in profusion from 
floor to roof. In the Holy of Holies were 
the ark of the covenant, the altar of in- 
cense.thealtar of the herds of propitiation, 
the sacred vessels, and ever-lighted can- 
dlesticks. Here magnificence seemed to 
eclipse itself. Everything was of polished 
gold. The most precious stones inter- 
mingled their lustre. Whatever ingen- 
uity could devise or wealth supply, was 
employed to decorate the especial dwell- 
ing-place of the Most High and inspire a 
sense of the splendor of his majesty. But 
why speak of the glory of the famous 
temple at [erusalem? What has it to do 
with Mary ? In the opinion of the Fa- 
thers that temple was one of the symbols 
of the sanctity of the most holy Virgin. 
If the temple erected by Solomon was so 
richly adorned, was it not befitting that 
the living temple of the Son of God, in 
which he abode for nine months in his 
human nature, should be ornamented with 
the sublimest brilliancy of virtue and 
grace ? Let us consider now the exalted 
holiness of Mary, who by a most singular 
privilege was exempt from all sin, origi- 
nal as well as actual. 

I. 

It is certain that Mary is Queen of 



162 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

Saints, surpassing them all in abundance 
of gifts, graces, and privileges granted to 
her by Almighty God. But the most em- 
inent of all the gifts, graces, and priv- 
ileges imparted to her is her immunity 
in her conception from the stain of 
original sin. God in his omnipotence 
possessed the power to enfranchise Mary 
from the law which involved all men in 
the sin of Adam, and it was exceedingly 
becoming that he should exercise this 
power in behalf of Mary. We cannot 
conceive the existence of a God without 
the attribute of infinite power. Our Sav- 
ior teaches us {Matt. xix. 26) that with 
God all things are possible. The angel 
said to the Blessed Virgin: No word will 
be impossible with God {Luke i. 37). Job 
had already said (xiv. 4.): Who can make 
him clean that is conceived of unclean 
seed ? Is it not thou who only art? No 
one can deny that God had the power and 
the liberty to preserve Mary from original 
sin. If he had, it was becoming that he 
should employ them. His infinite wis- 
dom demanded that, in the incarnation of 
the Word, he should operate in conform- 
ity with his holiness. 

What reason could there have been for 
denying to Mary a privilege so glorious? 
Should she, who was destined to be the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 163 



mother of God, to receive into her bosom 
the most pure lily of the valleys, the Sav- 
ior of the world, have been debased by 
the contamination of sin ? Should she, 
who has been selected from eternity as 
mother of God and sanctuary of the Holy 
Spirit, have been subjected for a period 
however brief to the dominion of the 
Prince of Darkness? An object of di- 
vine abhorrence could she ever have 
been, who was full of grace, and alone 
amongst all women elevated to the sub- 
limest of dignities? Was it becoming 
that Christ, the new Adam, should spring 
from a soil polluted with the malediction 
of sin? Can the thought be entertained 
for a moment that Mary was born devoid 
of a privilege which adorned in their or- 
igin not only the rebel angels but our 
first parents also, who were constituted 
by Almighty God in a state of rectitude 
and innocence? Can it be supposed that 
Mary was not more highly favored than 
Jeremias and the Baptist? They, how- 
ever, were sanctified in the bosoms of 
their mothers. 

Did Eve enjoy a more singular privilege 
than the mother of God? Yet Eve was 
formed free from the rebellion of con- 
cupiscence. Had Mary in her conception 
been sullied by original sin, her soul 



164 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

would have been disfigured, displeasing 
to God, unworthy of fellowship with him- 
self and the angels, and deserving to be 
excluded forever from heaven. If, in that 
first instant, death had overtaken her she 
would have been lost forever, condemned 
forever to darkness — she who was des- 
tined to bring light to the world. She 
might have been compared to a starwhich 
iseclipsed at its rising, to a young rose that 
withers in blowing, to a fountain of grace 
which was choked in its origin. She 
would be the mother of life after having 
been the victim of death. Such things 
could not be. Almighty God, for mo- 
tives less powerful than the exemption 
from sin of his mother, changed the 
course of nature, operated frequent mir- 
acles, and bestowed extraordinary favors. 
Did he not stop the sun in the midst of 
his course at the voice of Josue? Did he 
not recall the dead to life out of regard 
to Eliseus? Did he not deprive the lions 
of their ferocity for the protection of his 
servant Daniel? Did he not, contrary to 
the usual order of Providence, sanctify 
Jeremias before his birth? It is certain 
that the flesh of Christ is flesh of the vir- 
gin. Had she been stained with original 
sin it would follow that the Word, after 
his resurrection, glorified a flesh which 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 165 

in its origin was hateful to God and un- 
der the slavery of Satan. It was, finally, 
but just and reasonable that the Queen 
of Angels, who by divine promise was to 
crush the head of the serpent, should not 
be for a moment the slave of that enemy 
of man; otherwise he would still be able 
to reproach her and say to her in mock- 
ery, Behold the woman who crushed my 
head; but once her head was under my 
foot by means of original sin. She was my 
slave. Behold the woman who is called 
all-fair and the daughter of the King 
of glory; but once she was deformed by 
sin, and I was her first king and master. 
Behold her who is styled the abode and 
mother of virtues; but first her soul was 
defiled by evil; I abode in her, I held do- 
minion over her, and she was under my 
obedience. The force of these reasons 
must dissipate every doubt of the immac- 
ulate conception of the great mother of 
God. 

But Christ came to redeem Mary as 
well as the other descendants of Adam, 
and there is no redemption where there 
is no original sin. Mary was indeed re- 
deemed by Christ; but in a peculiar and 
more perfect manner, as was becoming 
in the case of her who was to give birth 
to the Holy of Holies and co-operate in 



166 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the redemption of man. In virtue ol 
thepassion and merits of Christ, Mary was 
preserved by especial favor from con- 
tracting the stain of sin, whilst others 
are only purified from guilt already in- 
curred. It is a greater kindness to pre- 
vent the unwary traveler from falling 
down a precipice than to lift him up and 
dress and heal his wounds after he has 
fallen. Did not the Savior owe this 
greater kindness to the mother of his 
predilection? Had he suffered her to be 
sullied by original sin, might not the im- 
pious boast that he could not, or would 
not, exempt her from the general law in- 
volving the children of Adam in sin ? 
But would not this be blasphemy a- 
gainstthe Omnipotent God? Would it not 
be deriding him for not making a distinc- 
tion between his mother and the rest of 
the human family? Did not the honor of 
the Son of God demand that he should be 
born of a mother unacquainted w r ith the 
servitude of sin? Was it becoming that 
he should descend from theall-pure bos- 
om of his Father into a bosom once pollut- 
ed with iniquity ? Reason cannot tolerate 
the thought that Mary was conceived in 
sin. 

One of the saddest effects of original 
sin is concupiscence. But the Holy Vir- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 167 

gin, by the mercy of God, was preserved 
from the sting of concupiscence. We 
may, therefore, fairly conclude that by 
the same mercy she was preserved from 
original sin. She never experienced 
the tumult of the passions and the mul- 
tiplicity of desires which blind us by 
their fury, and carry us away by their re- 
sistless impulse. She never felt the law 
of the members always opposing the law 
of the mind. She knew not the fierce 
war of the flesh in rebellion against the 
spirit. She never learned the sad lesson 
which experience teaches us, that it is 
a weary life to be in constant struggle 
with one's self; that there is no easy 
victory where man is alternately con- 
queror and conquered; that it is a costly 
triumph, where man at one time sits 
crowned in the triumphal car, and at an- 
other time, a captive, is led in chains be- 
fore it. 

If we turn to the books of the Holy 
Scriptures, we find Mary symbolically 
portrayed in the most beautiful colors as 
all-fair and all-pure in her conception. 
I will put enmities between thee and the 
woman, and thy seed and her seed ; she 
shall crush thy head {Gen. iii. 15). If 
Mary was subject to original sin, where 
is the perpetual enmity between her and 



168 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the serpent ? Instead of crushing the 
head of the serpent, she herself would 
have been infected by his poisonous 
fangs. The slavery of original sin is the 
head of the devil. Mary crushed his head 
because no slavery of sin ever gained 
entrance into her soul (St. Aug. in Gen.). 
And does not the Church apply to the 
Holy Virgin the words of the Holy Spirit: 
Thou art all-fair, O my love, and there 
is no spot in thee? Open to me, my 
sister, my love, my dove, my undenled 
(Cant. iv. 7 ; v. 2). Can this language be 
reconciled with the supposition of origi- 
nal sin in Mary ? 

We read in the Council of Trent (Sess. 
v. ch. 6): This Holy Synod declares that 
it is not its intention to comprehend in 
this decree, which treats of original sin, 
the blessed and immaculate Virgin Mary, 
mother of God. If she is not included 
is she not excluded ? Can any other in- 
terpretation be properly attached to the 
words ? 

It would be an endless task to under- 
take to quote the Fathers of the Church, 
who in every age expressly taught, or 
evidently supposed, or clearly insinuated 
the immunity of Mary from every blem- 
ish of sin in the first instant of her con- 
ception. Most celebrated divines, acade- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 169 

mies, and universities, continued to de- 
fend the same doctrine and disseminated 
their reasons through the world. Devout 
writers and eloquent orators proclaimed 
it to all the children of the Church and 
inculcated its acceptance. The children 
of Mary received the glad tidings with 
joy; and with gratitude to God, and 
pious exultation, cherished in their in- 
most soul the abiding belief that their 
dear mother, the refuge of sinners, the 
mother of their Savior, never remained, 
for one single instant, under the blight- 
ing ban of sin. 

When the propertime arrived,the Holy 
Spirit inspired the vicar of Christ on earth 
to yield to the solicitation of the whole 
Christian world, and solemnly define, by 
the infallible authority with which he is 
invested, that the glorious Virgin Mary, 
mother of God, was forever unstained by 
sin — was immaculate in her conception. 
Now,therefore, we hold it as a part of our 
Catholic Faith that sin never dared to 
lift its gloating eyes to the heavenly 
countenance of Mary ; that when she first 
drew the breath of life, she drew it as the 
beloved one of the Father, the Son, and 
the Holy Ghost. 



170 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



II. 

The grace received by Mary, in her con- 
ception, was an exhaustless source of mer- 
it, and sanctified all the actions of her life. 
Divines teach that the mother of God 
never produced one act which did not de- 
rive its worth from that primeval grace. 
The seed buried in the ground germinates, 
grows, rises above the earth, puts forth 
branches, is clothed with leaves, bears 
blossoms, and produces fruit; but it is to 
the virtue of the seed that the tree owes all 
its glory. In like manner the first grace 
received by Mary the very instant of her 
most pure conception , diffused its virtue 
through her heart and soul and her whole 
person, and regulated all her affections 
and actions. That first grace of sanctifica- 
tion may be regarded as the root of all the 
sublime favors possessed by Mary and of 
all the merit which she acquired. If the 
root be holy, so are the branches {Rom. 
xi. 16). These branches were the virtues 
of Mary; her good works, her worship of 
God, her offices of charity towards the 
neighbors, her practice of humility, by 
the constant exercise of which she was 
preserved from every slightest fault. 

This is no mere private opinion of pious 
persons, of theologians, of academies, or 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 171 

universities, but it is a truth which can- 
not be called in question. The sixth 
Ecumenical Council, held in Constanti- 
nople, defined, and its definition was con- 
firmed, that Mary was free from all imper- 
fection and stain in body, soul, and under- 
standing. The Council of Trent defined 
(Sess. vi. can. 23), that man could not, dur- 
ing his whole life, avoid all sins, also ve- 
nial sins, unless by especial privilege, as 
the Church holds concerning the Blessed 
Virgin. This was always the doctrine of 
the Fathers of the Church. When treat- 
ing of sins, says St. Augustine (de nat. et 
grat. c. 36), there is no question about the 
holy Virgin Mary. We know that upon 
her who merited to conceive and give 
birth to Him who could never sin, more 
abundant grace was bestowed that she 
might utterly triumph over sin. We must 
confess, therefore, and defend with the 
Angelic Doctor (1 Sent. dis. 44), that the 
Virgin Mary committed no actual sin, not 
even a venial sin. 

ASPIRATION. 

From the anger of God deliver us, 
Holy Virgin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Entreat the Blessed Virgin to obtain for 



172 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

you sincere sorrow for all past sins, a firm 
resolution to avoid sin hereafter, and grace 
to observe it. 

LITANY. 

Read the "Immaculate Co?iceptio?i" by 
J. W. Bryant. 



SEVENTEENTH DAY. 

SORROWS OF MARY. 
"Respha, the daughter of Aia, took haircloth 
and spread it under her upon the rock, from 
the beginning of the harvest till water dropped 
upon them, {the children s bodies) out of heaven: 
and suffered neither the birds to tear them by- 
day, nor the beasts by night." 2 Kings xxi. 10. 

TN the books of the old law, there is not 
a more admirable example of motherly- 
love than that of Respha, mother of 
Armon and Miphiboseth, who were cru- 
cified by the Gabaonites out of hatred a- 
gainst their father Saul. After having 
suffered the extreme affliction of witness- 
ing the barbarous execution of her be- 
loved sons, she spread haircloth upon 
the rock and sat upon it to watch their 
bodies, in order to prevent the birds from 
tearing them byday,or the beasts by night. 
And it.was her determination to remain 
there as long as life should endure. This 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 173 

is a symbol of the sorrow of Mary, 
the most tender of all mothers, who 
suffered the severest anguish during the 
life and at the death of her only Son Jesus. 
To Mary may be applied the lamentations 
of Jeremias, when he deplored the mis- 
fortunes of the holy city. To what shall 
I compare thee, or to what shall I liken 
thee,0 daughter of Jerusalem? To what 
shall I equal thee, that I may comfort 
thee, O virgin daughter of Sion? For 
great as the sea is thy destruction. Who 
shall heal thee {Lam. ii. 13)? Mary, 
standing at the foot of the cross, could 
well have said to the passers by, O ail ye 
that pass by the way, attend and see if 
there be any sorrow like to my sorrow (i. 
1 2). Who will give water to my head, and 
a fountain of tears to my eyes? And I will 
weep day and night ( Jer. ix. i). Call me not 
Noemi (that is, beautiful), but call me Mara 
(that is, bitter); for the Almighty hath 
quite rilled me with bitterness {Ruth i. 20). 
In order to excite our gratitude to Mary, 
who offered her own heart, in union with 
that of her Son, as a holocaust to God for 
our salvation, let us endeavor to unfold 
the qualities of her afflictions, so that we 
may arrive at a knowledge of the great- 
ness of her sorrows from the love which 
she bore her Son and us, and from the 



174 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

fortitude of soul with which she had to 
suffer them. 

I. 

The love of mothers is said to be far 
more ardent than that of fathers. God 
himself, wishing to express the kindness 
of his affection, compares himself to a 
mother (Is. xlix. 16). Jeremias, demand- 
ing great sorrow from the sinner, de- 
mands it similar to that of a mother who 
deplores the death of her only son (vi. 29). 
The sorrow of a mother is frequently 
brought forward to signify sorrow of the 
greatest intensity. Christ was the only 
Son of Mary, and she loved him more 
purely, more tenderly, and more fervent- 
ly than other mothers love their children. 
Many reasons concur to demonstrate the 
exceeding great love of Mary for her Son. 
Hers was the love of a most perfect, most 
just, and most wise mother for a Son who 
was holiness by essence. Christ was her 
Son by the sole operation of the Holy 
Ghost; she loved him, therefore, with all 
the love of both father and mother. En- 
tire sympathy existed between mother 
and Son; this produced uniformity of will, 
and a love so perfect that the two hearts 
became one; the sword that transpierced 
one, also transpierced the other. The 



THE M ONTH OF OUR LADY. \ 75 

thirty-three years which Mary passed 
with Jesus increased her love everyday. 
His obedience, his amiability, his wisdom, 
the blessings which he scattered on every 
side, the gratitude of all classes of per- 
sons who attended him, these and a 
thousand other circumstances caused her 
love to gain daily new depth and ardor. 
Who, then, can describe the bitter sor- 
row of Mary when she beheld her Son 
subjected to every species of insult and 
torture, and expiring in innocence on a 
cross of shame ? 

But the love of nature was united in 
Mary with the love of charity, and this 
augmented exceedingly her sorrows. 
Other mothers love their children; but 
at the same time, they are bound to cher- 
ish a stronger love — love for Almighty 
God. In Mary the love of God was the love 
of her Son ; for, whilst he was her Son, 
he was her God ; and her love for God was 
great beyond human understanding; it 
was that of the creature for the Creator ; 
of the daughter for a most affectionate 
father; of the spouse for her beloved one. 

We must now consider the affliction, 
the anguish, of this mother who loved 
Jesus Christ as only his mother could love 
him. Her sorrows commenced when Si- 
meon, taking in his arms the infant Jesus, 



176 THE MONTH OF O UR LADY. 

turned to his mother and said with pro- 
phetic voice: Thy soul a sword shall 
pierce {Luke ii. 35). From that moment 
the passion of Christ was always before 
the eyes of Mary. From that moment 
she beheld him covered with reproaches 
and a sign for contradiction. In nour- 
ishing him at her bosom, she thought 
of the gall and vinegar which were to be 
presented to him in his thirst. In putting 
his garments around him, she thought of 
the cords with which he was to be bound. 
She looked upon his smiling countenance, 
and she foresaw it defiled with spittle; 
she saw his head crowned with thorns; 
his auburn hair clotted with blood ; when 
she viewed his little feet and hands, the 
nails which were to fasten them to the 
cross were before her eyes: his heart she 
saw pierced by a lance. When she bent 
over him in his sleep with all the fond- 
ness of such a mother, his lacerated and 
lifeless body, which she was one day to 
receive in her arms, appeared in vision 
before her. With what teelings of agon- 
izing love did she not press him to her 
heart ! This martyrdom of Mary was re- 
peated whenever she thought of the fu- 
ture life of her Son. 

If the thought of Christ's future suffer- 
ings was martyrdom to Mary, who could 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 177 

fathom the ocean of her sorrows when his 
passion actually took place! The wounds 
in the body of Christ were wounds in the 
heart of Mary, says St. Jerome {de B. V.), 
and St. Bonaventure {de Planctu V.) says: 
What thy Son suffered in body, thou, O 
Virgin, didst surfer in heart. The thorns 
which perforated the head of her Son, the 
scourges which tore his flesh from his 
bones, the blows of the hammer, the 
nails, the cries of derision, were so many 
arrows penetrating the heart and soul of 
Mary. She saw her son bound, says St. 
Anselm {Dial, de Pass.), and she could 
not loose him; she saw him wounded, and 
she could not dress his wounds ; she saw 
his face flowing with blood, and she could 
not wipe it away; she wished to embrace 
him and it was not permitted to her. The 
heart of Mary, says St. Laurence Giusti- 
niani, was a highly polished mirror, which 
reflected a perfect image of the passion and 
death of Christ. Mary, says St. Bernard, 
stood speechless near the cross; she was 
dead, and still sne was living. She was 
dead with her Son, living with her sorrows. 
Mary, says St. Bernardine, was dying 
every moment, yet could not die. A 
power greater than human commanded 
her soul to remain united with her body. 
Almighty God would not oblige Agar to 



178 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



witness the death struggles of her child 
Ismael. When he seemed on the point 
of perishing from thirst Agar withdrew; 
for she said, I will not see the boy die 
(Gen. xxi. 16). When Noe went into the 
ark, the Lord shut him in on the outside 
(Gen.vii. 16) that he might not be terrified 
with the destruction caused by the waters 
of the deluge. When God commanded 
Abraham to offer in sacrifice his beloved 
son Isaac, it was not to be done in the 
presence of Sara. Why, then, was not 
the Almighty as thoughtful of the feelings 
of Mary? The intense love which existed 
between Jesus and Mary demanded that 
their hearts should share joy and sorrow 
in common. This is the sentiment of the 
Fathers of the Church. We are, more- 
over, frequently instructed by St. Paul, 
that participation in the sufferings of 
Christ on earth is the characteristic of the 
predestined to heaven. Writing to the 
Galatians, he places his glory in being 
nailed with Christ to the cross (Gal. ii.19). 
To the Philippians, he expresses his great 
desire to know the fellowship of the suf- 
ferings of Christ, being made conformable 
to his death (iii. 10). The love of Mary 
for Jesus, then, far greater than the love 
cherished for him by every apostle and 
every saint, called for a far deeper par- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 179 



ticipation in his passion, a more thorough 
fellowship of his sufferings. 

II. 

The sorrows of Mary were excessive: 
but she met them with a strength of mind 
and firmness of heart that must excite our 
highest admiration and astonishment. 
Mary, as far as she was able, drank, 
draught by draught, alone with Jesus, the 
bitter chalice of his passion. No sooner 
had she heard of his capture than she en- 
deavored to reach his presence. She 
followed him to the tribunals of Annas, 
Caiphas, Herod, and Pilate, and heard all 
the expressions of scorn, mockery and 
derision which were uttered against him. 
Prevented by the rabble from approach- 
ing him, she heard the blows of the 
scourge which fell thick and heavy upon 
his delicate body. She beheld him seated, 
with a scarlet cloak about him, as a mock 
king, with a reed in his hand for a scep- 
tre, a crown of thorns upon his head, and 
rivulets of blood streaming down his 
cheeks. Having heard his condemnation, 
and unable to penetrate the crowd which 
surrounded him, she passed through the 
city and reached the way which mounts 
up to Calvary, in order to obtain a nearer 
view, at least, of the Lamb led to slaugh- 



ISO THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ter. She sees him pass, followed by the 
two thieves, and the instruments of his 
passion around Him. His members are ex- 
tended upon the cross; his hands and feet 
are nailed to it; it is lifted up; and Christ 
hangs, mangled and naked, between heav- 
en and earth, and soon languishes in 
death. And what does Mary do ? His 
mother stood by the cross of Jesus (John 
xix. 25). But did she not fill the air with 
groans, and shrieks, and lamentations ? 
The holy Gospel says that she stood by 
the cross of Jesus, and it says no more. 
I read of her standing by the cross, says 
St. Ambrose, 1 do not read of her weeping. 
St ant em lego.flentem non lego. With tear- 
less eye she accompanied her Son bear- 
ing his cross to the summit of Calvary; 
she beheld him crucified, she heard the 
insults of his executioners; the lance 
which pierced his heart she felt penetrat- 
ing her own. What constancy of soul! 
When she heard her Son exclaim: My God 
my God, why hast thou forsaken me? 
what a deep wound must have been 
opened in the heart of Mary! Every re- 
lief is denied her Son, even a drop of water 
to alleviate his thirst. What a trial for the 
constancy of Mary's afflicted heart ! 
Jesus yields up his spirit; and Mary says 
within her agonizing soul: O my Son, who 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 181 

will give to me that I may die for thee! 
The Son dies; why does not the sorrowful 
mother die with thee {Bern, de Planet, v.) ? 
Tears and sighs temper sorrow, but grief 
which speaks not whispers the over- 
fraught heart and bids it break. So it was 
with Mary. When Jesus expired, all na- 
ture was thrown into agitation; the veil of 
the temple was rent in two from the top 
even to the bottom; and the earth quaked, 
and the rocks were rent, and the graves 
were opened, and the bodies of the saints 
that had slept arose {Matt. xxvi. 51). All 
nature was convulsed, but the holy Vir- 
gin stood immovable in her sorrow. 

But whence the wonderful constancy 
of Mary in the passion of her Son? It 
was the result of conformity with the 
will of God, who required full satisfaction 
for our sins. Adequate satisfaction for the 
sins of man could be rendered to an of- 
fended God by him only who was both 
God and man. Such was Jesus, the Son 
of Mary. Jesus submitted willingly to the 
pleasure of his Father, and offered to him 
aninfinite treasure of sufferings and merit 
for our redemption and salvation. Mary, 
being wholly submissive to the will of 
God, could not oppose the passion of her 
Son. Mary, moreover, besides being the 
mother of God was our mother also and 



182 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

given to us as a mother by Christ on the 
cross. 

The mother must desire the welfare of 
her children; our welfare required that 
Christ should suffer and die for our re- 
demption; Mary, therefore, with unshak- 
en firmness, in spite of every natural feel- 
ing, willingly accepted the passion of her 
Son. 

ASPIRATION. 

Holy Mother, impress the wounds of 
thy Son, my Savior, upon my heart. 

PRACTICE. 

Say the beads, reflecting on the dolor- 
ous mysteries of the Rosary. 

LITANY. 

Read Fabers Bethlehem. 



EIGHTEENTH DAY. 

MARY, MOTHER OF SINNERS. 

"I will go into the field and glean the ears of 
corn that escape the hands of the reapers, where- 
soever I shall find grace with a householder that 
will be favorable to me." Ruth ii. 2. 



THE kind-hearted Ruth, having arrived 
in the neighborhood of Bethlehem 



THE MONTH OT OUR LADY. 



183 



from the land of Moab, and seeking to 
relieve the distressed circumstances of 
Noemi, said to her: I will go into the field 
and glean the ears of corn that escape the 
hands of the reapers, wheresoever I shall 
find grace with a householder that will be 
favorable to me. She then went to the 
field of Booz, a man of wealth and high 
condition, and, with permission, followed 
industriously the footsteps of the reapers 
and gathered the ears of corn that es- 
caped their hands. 

This is a simple historical fact recorded 
in the books of the old law ; but sacred ex- 
positors regard it as full also of mystic 
and symbolic meaning. Booz, they say, 
represents God; the reapers, those charged 
with the care of souls ; the ears of corn 
which escaped the reapers' hands, hard- 
ened and inveterate sinners, who elude 
the zeal of the ministers of God and be- 
come an easy prey to the vultures of the 
abyss. Ruth is a figure of Mary, the 
most benign mother of God, through 
whose powerful intercession the most in- 
corrigible sinners are affectionately in- 
vited to pardon and happiness. As Ruth 
found favor in the eyes of Booz, says St, 
Bonaventure, so Mary found favor in the 
eyes of the Savior; the ears of corn, that 
is, the souls abandoned by the reapers, 



184 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

she can allure to penance, lead to pardon, 
and the possession of heaven. Mary is 
the kind mother of sinners, because she 
obtains for them repentance and pardon ; 
and because through her intercession 
sinners attain the glory of paradise. 

I. 

To acquire a thorough understanding 
of the great benefit^which the sinner ob- 
tains from God by means of Mary, when 
he rises from the state of sin to the state 
of grace, we must consider attentively and 
calmly what sin itself is. Mortal sin is a 
transgression of the eternal law, an in- 
jury done by the creature tothe sovereign 
majesty of the Creator; it is a rebellion 
of man against God by which man sub- 
jects himself to Satan, the most cruel of 
tyrants ; it is a renouncement of eternal 
happiness for the sake of eternal misery. 
Whatever can be conceived most extrav- 
agant, most hideous, most horrible, fur- 
nishes but a faint idea of sin. God hates 
sin as much as he loves himself. The 
same reasons for which he, of necessity,, 
loves himself, force him to detest and 
abominate sin, infinitely opposed to him- 
self. The love of God for himself is, 
therefore, the reason and measure of his 
hatred of sin. As God loves himself with 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 185 

an eternal love, and there never was a 
moment in which he did not love himself, 
so he detests sin with eternal detestation, 
and there never was a moment in which 
he did not detest it. God loves himself 
by necessity of his nature; he necessar- 
ily therefore abominates sin, and can no 
more cease to abominate it than he can 
cease to be God. God loves himself with 
infinite love; he could not love himself 
w r ith love more intense; his hatred for sin 
is, therefore, infinite; he could not pur- 
sue it with greater hatred. The sacred 
writings are filled with examples of the 
hatred of God against sin. Lucifer, 
the noblest of the angels, rebelled in his 
pride against God, and drew into his re- 
bellion a third part of the angelic host; 
God stretched forth his right hand in an- 
ger, and precipitated them all into the 
abyss of hell. Adam and Eve sinned a- 
gainst God by disobedience,and God with- 
out delay despoiled them of original jus- 
tice, banished them from the paradise of 
pleasure, let loose in their hearts the rest- 
lessness of concupiscence and fury of 
their passions, to deprive them even in 
this life of all tranquillity of soul. God 
punished with eternal death Cain, the 
murderer of his brother. For their in- 
iquities the Lord overwhelmed all the gen- 



186 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

erations of men with the waters of the 
deluge, and rained down brimstone and 
fire from heaven upon Sodom and Go- 
morrha. Countless other examples are 
recorded in Scripture of the chastisements 
for sin inflicted upon men by Almighty 
God. The prophets portray in the most 
vivid colors the injury which is done to 
God by sin and the indignation of the 
Almighty against the sinner. And 
whence all the evils which inundate the 
earth — crimes tempest, earthquakes, the 
thirst of wild beasts for human blood,war, 
famine, pestilence, diseases, death — 
whence hell itself for man, if not from the 
sins of man, from man's disobedience to 
his God? 

The greatest punishment with which 
God can visit sinful man on earth is the 
withdrawal of grace and light from on 
high ; for want of which man goes wan- 
dering and stumbling in the dark, unable 
to discern the way which leads to heaven. 
And this is a punishment which is soon 
felt by the sinner. But is there no re- 
source for him ? There is, and it is Mary. 
She incessantly repeats to the sinner: I 
am the mother of fair love, and of fear, 
and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In 
me is all grace of the way, and of the 
truth ; in me is all hope of life, and of vir- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



187 



tue (EccL xxiv. 24). Mary is our mother 
and loving mother, and was bequeathed 
to us as a mother by Jesus, her Son, ex- 
piring on the cross for our redemption. 
The especial care and solicitude of Mary, 
our mother, for her children, has refer- 
ence to their eternal salvation. It is the 
duty of a mother to watch over, nourish, 
and instruct her children. If she sees 
her son in danger of falling down a prec- 
ipice, she flies on the wings of love to 
withdraw him from danger; if he is 
taken ill and she sees him in danger of 
death, she knows no rest, day nor night, 
until his health is re-established. Mary 
guards Christians by her patronage, she 
nourishes them with holy thoughts, and 
instructs them by the light of grace in 
their duties to Almighty God. If one of 
her children, from perverse inclination or 
transport of passion or violence of temp- 
tation, falls into sin, or, what is far worse, 
by repeated acts becomes habituated to 
sin and lies in sluggish and stupid repose 
in the arms of iniquity, Mary, full of anxi- 
ety, presents herself before the throne of 
her Son, and ceases not to ask, to beg, and 
to pray, until the slumberer is aroused, 
until the grace of repentance has been 
vouchsafed to her unfortunate child. 
Mary, by giving birth to Jesus, introduced 



188 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



life into the world and is justly called 
the mother of the living (S. Ephr. de 
Laud. Deip^ ; and as Jesus is the life, 
Mary is the mother of life. 

Mary is the mother of life even for those 
who, lying immersed in iniquities, know 
not what to do or whither to turn. These 
miserable sinners may be compared to 
mariners, who, being overtaken by a tem- 
pest in the midst of the ocean and tossed 
to and fro by the fury of the winds during 
the darkness of the storm, lose their 
course and know not in what direction to 
steer. Unexpectedly the clouds divide, 
the polar star appears, their courage re- 
vives, the course is pointed out to them, 
and they are saved from shipwreck. The 
Fathers of the Church teach that Mary is 
the beneficent star that sheds light over 
the path of heaven for the sinner; and 
the Church hence salutes her, Hail, Star 
of the Sea. It is not the merits of the 
sinner, for merits he has none, but the 
tender love of our amiable mother, which 
obtains for him light and grace to be con- 
verted and live a life of virtue on earth, 
and thus merit a life of happiness in 
heaven. 

God is indignant against the sinner, and 
if he is slow to vengeance, he is slow 
out of mercy, that he may see whether 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



the sinner will at last listen to the re- 
proaches with which conscience still con- 
tinues to load him. Mary, aware of the 
blindness and the danger of the sinner and 
of the eternal pains already prepared for 
his crimes, with feelings of motherly com- 
passion says to her Son Jesus: They have 
no wine. Only Son of my bosom, that 
sinner my son too by adoption, given to 
me by thyself, is in want of the wine of 
grace. Jesus, who knew not how to re- 
fuse to his mother a temporal favor on 
earth, much less knows how to refuse her 
in heaven a favor which regards the 
eternal salvation of a soul redeemed by 
his own blood. St. Peter Damian (Serm. 
i. de Nat?) says, that the treasures of di- 
vine mercy are in the hands of Mary and 
that she disposes them to whoso she 
wishes. A striking image of what has 
been said is found in that which is related 
in the first book of Kings of Abigail and 
David. There was in the wilderness of 
Maon a man by the name of Nabal, 
whose possessions were in Carmel. He 
was very wealthy, possessing three thou- 
sand sheep and a thousand goats. But he 
was foolish, rough and harsh in his man- 
ners, and ungrateful to David who had 
protected his property in the wilderness. 
When the servants of David applied to 



190 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



him for food in the name of their master, 
he dismissed them with an insulting an- 
swer. Abigail, as prudent as fair, fore- 
seeing the coming vengeance of David, 
hastened to meet him in order to antici- 
pate the effects of his indignation. Pros- 
trate at the feet of David, she said to 
him : regard not, I pray, this naughty 
man Nabal; for according to his name, he 
is a fool, and folly is with him (i Kings 
xxv. 25). David, appeased by the entrea- 
ties of Abigail, abstained from shedding 
blood and taking vengeance of Nabal, 
and said to Abigail: go in peace into thy 
house; behold, I have heard thy voice, 
and have honored thy face. In this fact, 
explained allegorically by the Fathers, 
Nabal represents the sinner, David, God, 
and Abigail the Virgin Mary. Mary by 
her fervent intercession, wards off from 
foolish sinners the blows of divine in- 
dignation, obtains for them a return to 
the life of grace, and of children of 
wrath, makes them children of God. 
Mary is therefore, the mother of sinners, 
because she interests herself assiduously 
in their behalf, obtains for them sorrow 
for their follies and crimes, and leads them 
back to God and the life of grace. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



191 



II. 

Man by sin becomes an enemy of God, 
and God in just punishment of his 
crime, despoils him of grace and leaves 
him in the hands of his wickedness and 
blind passions; and if he dies in his sins, 
he is hurled into the abyss, there to under- 
go eternal torments. If, through the in- 
tercession of Mary, the sinner lives 
again to grace, she extends to him still 
further patronage, in order that he may 
close his days in the peace of the Lord 
and enter upon the enjoyment of an im- 
perishable life of glory in heaven. Here 
it is proper to observe that as soon as by 
means of divine grace we are rendered 
adopted children of God, we have com- 
municated to us a right to the eternal 
kingdom of heaven and to all the spirit- 
ual favors which are necessary for its 
attainment. For, as the Apostle says 
{Gal. iv. 7.), if children we are also heirs. 
When God infuses grace into our souls, 
in order that it may be a perfect mark of 
our adoption he gives us a right to his 
kingdom, and makes us, as children, 
heirs of all his spiritual blessings. As 
the grace which is gratuitously conferred 
upon us to exalt us to the quality of 
children of God, is the principle of spirit- 



192 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ual life within us, it also enables all our 
actions to become actions of life, having 
reference to eternal life and endowed 
with value for the acquisition of celestial 
glory. Since we acquire grace through 
the beneficent intercession of Mary, it 
follows that Mary is, to the repentant 
sinner, the mother of grace on earth, and 
the guide to glory in heaven. What a 
consoling thought that the most \\o\y 
Virgin is our mother! Grace! Glory! Peer- 
less treasures! Yet the one and the other 
we obtain through Mary. Well does the 
Church honor her with the noble de- 
nomination of Gate of Heaven. Even to 
the heart of the unfortunate sinner is it 
consoling, when, standing on the thres- 
hold of the church on festive occasions, 
he hears the ministers of God chanting 
joyfully in honor of Mary— O happy Gate 
of Heaven. 

All that has been said of Mary is reg- 
istered in the writings of the Fathers of 
the Church, Greek as well as Latin. A 
few only can be mentioned. St. Peter 
Damian {de. B. V.), reflecting upon the 
blessings and graces imparted to sinners 
through the mediation of Mary, with holy 
exultation styles her the Ladder of Heav- 
en, because, says the Saint, by Mary God 
descended from heaven to earth, in order 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 193 

that by her men might mount from earth 
to heaven. St. Thomas (Oftitsc. 8), assign- 
ing the reason why the Church honors 
Alary under the symbol of Star of the Sea, 
says : x\s mariners are guided to port by a 
star, so Christians are guided to heaven 
by Mary. St. Bernard (Serm. de S. M) 
says: The ark of Noe signifies the Ark of 
Grace; that is, the Virgin Mary; for, as 
by means of the ark Noe and his family 
escaped the deluge, so by means of Mary 
sinners escape the shipwreck of sin. Noe 
built the ark in order that he might save 
himself from the waters of the deluge ; 
Christ prepared Mary for himself in order 
that he might redeem the human race. 
By means of the ark, eight persons only 
were preserved ; by means of Alary, all 
are invited to salvation. Let us conclude 
with St. Anastasius of Antioch {Serm. 
i. de Anmmt.)\ Hail, full of grace, for us 
the way of salvation and the ascent to 
heaven and place of repose and taber- 
nacle of refreshment. 

ASPIRATION. 

Deliver us from eternal death, holy 
Virgin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

As soon as you fall into any fault, pray 



194 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the Blessed Virgin to obtain pardon for 
you from God. 

LITANY. 

Read "Little Month of May." 



NINETEENTH DAY. 

THE GOODNESS OF OUR LADY. 

''Who is she that cometh forth as the morning 
rising?" Cant. vi. 9. 

1C\URING the darkness of the night. 
U business, commerce, all the stirring 
affairs of life, are in repose. But when 
night approaches its close, the young 
shepherd rises from his couch of straw, 
puts on his humble garments, and ascends 
the mountain side. When he reaches the 
summit, he turns his eyes to the east.and at 
the first glimmer of the morning light he 
strikes up a joyful strain to welcome the 
rosy dawn. Dreary is the night, and par- 
ticularly during the gloom of winter; 
but most dreary was the night of the Old 
Testament, prolonged for forty centuries. 
After our first parents had extinguished 
by sin the vivifying light of grace, dark- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 195 

ness, in the words of the prophet, covered 
the earth (Is. lx. 2). The patriarchs, the 
prophets, and the souls of the departed 
just, were sighing in the expectation of 
rising day, and gave vent to their sor- 
row by frequently exclaiming: O Sun of 
Justice, when wilt thou rise above us, 
thou beneficent bearer of light, to illu- 
minate our souls lying here in prison and 
darkness! For a long time, heaven was 
inexorable. But now the oracles of the 
prophets were heard no more; the sceptre 
of Juda had passed to the hands of a 
stranger; the years of the prophecy of 
Daniel were approaching their termina- 
tion; and the redemption of the human 
race appeared to be imminent. Suddenly, 
like the lightning flash breaking through 
the obscurity of night, a light, as of morn- 
ing, was seen, and the festive chant of an- 
gels was heard, who sang their applause 
and interrogated one another: Who is 
she that cometh forth as the morning 
rising? Who is she, who by the efful- 
gence of her splendor eclipses all the 
stars of the firmament? Who is she 
who, becoming the benefactress of mor- 
tals, bears alleviation to the sick and 
weak? Who is she, who with fresh-fal- 
ling dew moistens the earth and renders 
it fruitful? Who is she, who putting 



196 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

wild beasts and robbers to flight, makes 
secure the way o fthe traveler? Why, O 
blessed angels, are you astonished ? 
What is the cause of your wonder? Do 
you not believe that God established, as 
the principle of salvation for all men 
past and future, belief in Jesus Christ 
incarnate, and that the same God 
foretold to Adam and Eve that a woman 
would crush the head of the serpent? 
Are you unacquainted with the prophetic 
declaration that a virgin would conceive 
and bring forth the Messias? Mary, 
the most holy Mother of God, is that 
light, which, gleaming before your eyes 
like a sparkling aurora on the day of her 
nativity, shortly after came to us the 
bearer of the divine source of splendor, 
the only-begotten Son of God. Exult. 
O lovers of the Virgin, and let your 
hearts be inundated with the purest joy 
to the universal world. Let us, adhering 
to the symbol of the dawn, explain the 
motives of exultation, the prerogatives 
and privileges of Mary. 

I. 

The first property of the dawn is, that 
it surpasses in brilliancy all the stars of 
the firmament. It is indeed delightful to 
the view and pleasant to the soul to turn 



THE MON TH OF OUR LADY. 1 97 

the eves to the heavens in a still and 
cloudless night. It is a spectacle worthy 
of admiration, to observe so many con- 
stellations arrayed in regular bands; so 
many heavenly bodies, different in size, 
and distinguished by varying degrees of 
splendor, regularly accomplishing their 
allotted course. A night of such bright- 
ness scarce yields in lustre to day itself. 
But at the first blush of morning the light 
of the gleaming stars begins to grow pale; 
by degrees it is extinguished and a veil 
seems to be drawn over all the beauties of 
the night. Those stars are the angels and 
the immense bands of saints. But they all, 
though effulgent with holiness, disappear 
in the presence of Mary. The angels are 
pure spirits,and their splendor is so over- 
powering that mortal eye could not sus- 
tain it. An angel wrestled with Jacob 
during the whole night, but at trie ap- 
proach of morning he requested to be 
released. Let me go, for it is break of day 
{Gen. xxxii. 26). But why ask to be let go 
because it was break of day? Was not he 
an angel of light? As the stars hide 
themselves at the coming of the light of 
the sun, the angel was abashed by the 
presence of Mary, of whom the morning 
rising was a figure. Mary is so resplend- 
ent with supernatural light, says St. Peter 



198 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

Damian (Serm. 20), that, like the dawn, 
she excels the brightness of all other 
celestial beings, and they are as if they 
were not when she appears. 

The Patriarchs were great and glorious 
by virtue and faith, but in virtue and faith 
they were far surpassed by Mary. The 
Prophets were distinguished for their 
power of foretelling future events, but 
Mary is their Queen. The apostles, the 
confessors, the anchorites, acquired great 
glory by watchings, fastings, labors, aus- 
terities, and other good works; but their 
glory cannot compare with the glory of 
Mary. Sublime is the gloryof the martyrs, 
with their palms in their hands and their 
crowns on their heads; but Mary is the 
greatest of all martyrs, and of them all she 
is the Queen. Agatha, Cecilia, Agnes, 
Theresa, and the innumerable array of 
holy virgins, seem incomparably fair and 
beyond competition in merit; but when 
we turn our eyes to Mary, the Queen of 
Virgins, never sullied by the slightest stain 
of sin,we exclaim: Who is she that cometh 
forth as the morning rising ? What does 
she say of herself ? From the beginning, 
and before the world, was I created; and 
unto the world to come I shall not cease 
to be; and in the holy dwelling-place I 
have ministered before him. I took root in 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 199 

an honorable people, and in the portion of 
my God his inheritance; and my abode is 
in the full assembly of Saints (EccL xxiv. 
14). What wonder, then, says St. Peter 
Damian (Serm. 3, in Nat. V.), if the praises 
of the holy Virgin defy the power of the 
human language, since she transcends in 
sublimity of merit human nature itself ? 
Patriarchs and prophets, apostles and 
martyrs, with all their triumphs around 
them, cannot equal the grandeur of Mary, 
for she possessed the virtues of them all 
united; she was enriched with the plen- 
itude of the treasures of divine grace. 

Another property of the dawn is to 
bring relief to the sick; for to them the 
morning is as cheering as the night is 
wearisome. As far as regards infirmities 
of the body, sacred shrines in every part 
of the Christian world bear witness, by 
thousands of votive tablets, to the bound- 
less kindness of Mary. There are to be 
seen the grateful acknowledgment of 
persons afflicted with every species of 
human ailment; through the mediation of 
Mary they recovered health and vigor 
of body and buoyancy of spirit. 

But let us rather speak of spiritual in- 
firmities, of sins which lacerate the soul 
and subject it to the slavery of Satan. 
Sin, being opposed to the supernatural 



200 



THE MOXTH OF OUR LADY. 



light and efficacy of grace, involves man 
in darkness, and breaking the force of 
the mind, renders it languid and infirm, so 
that it is unable to distinguish what is 
truly good, and love it and pursue it. 
But O the kindness of Mary towards 
poor, unfortunate sinners! What one of 
them had ever humble recourse to her 
and met with a repulse? Mary by her in- 
tercession infuses light into the darkness 
of the sinner who is walking in the 
shadow of death, in order that he may be 
enabled to discover his faults and iniq- 
uities. The mercy of Mary, says St- 
Bonaventure [in Spec.c. 8), was great 
when she was an exile on earth, but it 
is far greater now, when she is reign- 
ing triumphant in heaven. She dis- 
plays it now more fully., because from her 
throne on high she discerns far greater 
necessities. From the light of her mercy 
on earth, she may be called fair as the 
moon; but from the splendor of the mercy 
which she now exhibits, she is to be called 
bright as the sun. Upon whom does not 
the sun shine? It shines impartially upon 
the just and the unjust. So Mary is ready 
to give ear to the prayers of ail men. and 
presses to her bosom with motherly feel- 
ing the repentant sinner. She is that Sun of 
Mercy that causes the rays of divine grace 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. £ol 

to reach all the children of Adam (St. 
Bernard, de Verb. Apoc. ). Who, now, will 
not think of Mar)-? Who will not love 
her who kindly obtains for us pardon and 
grace? She is a lamp to our feet in the 
doubtful paths of life; she is relief to our 
heart in its anxieties, our solace in afflic- 
tion, our refuge in temptation and danger; 
after her only Son, and with virtue de- 
rived from him, she is salvation to the 
faithful. But whilst sinners have every 
motive to confide in the holy Virgin, this 
is not to be understood of those sinners 
who, with obstinate impiety, bend their 
neck voluntarily underthe yoke of their 
iniquities, because they imagine that 
Mary will be always their protectress. 
Mary is not the protectress and advocate 
of the willing slaves of wickedness, but 
of repentant sinners who- wish to return 
to the bosom of their Father and God. 

Another property of dawn is to render 
the earth fruitful by refreshing dews in- 
trusted to its dispensing hands. Mary 
has the dispensing of the treasures of 
heaven ; and upon men, through her. de- 
scend celestial favors. Mary is a treas- 
ury, says Richard of St. Lawrence, be- 
cause in her the Almighty has deposited 
all the gifts of his grace ; and from this 
treasury he draws bountiful pay for his 



202 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

valiant soldiers. Do you know to which 
side Jesus, when expiring, inclined his 
head ? To the side, says Cardinal Hugo, 
on which his mother stood. And why? 
To point out to us to whom we should 
have recourse in our necessities after his 
death ; that is, to Mary. 

The Lord commanded Moses to add to 
the ark of the testimony the propitiatory, 
which was to be made of the purest gold; 
thence God promised to give orders and 
speak to him {Ex. xxv. 17-22). This pro- 
pitiatory, according to a sacred commen- 
tator, was a figure of Mary. From her 
the Lord speaks to the hearts of men, 
grants pardon, imparts graces ; from her 
all good flows to man. Mary became the 
treasurer of divine grace by containing 
within herself the Author of grace, and 
she is also the dispenser of heavenly 
favors. Hence we may conclude with St. 
Bernard {in Sign. Mag.), that from the 
fulness of Mary all receive; the slave, 
ransom ; the diseased, health; the afflicted, 
consolation ; the sinner, pardon ; the just 
man, grace ; the angel, joy ; and the Most 
Holy Trinity, glory. 

II. 

The fourth property of dawn is, that it 

dissipates by its brightness the darkness 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 203 

of night; lays open dangers hidden before, 
and puts to flight thieves and robbers. 
Thieves and robbers station themselves 
in the night by the wayside,and lie in wait 
for the traveler in order to strip him of 
his property; the demon spreads his nets 
and weaves his plans in order to despoil 
man of the grace of God. Although Lucifer 
experienced a ruinous defeat when he was 
driven from heaven forever and precipi- 
tated into the abyss of hell, he still re- 
tains that envious malignity which he had 
in the beginning; and not being able to 
satisfy it by rising up against God him- 
self, he wages war with all his power 
against the favored creatures of God. 
He never indulges repose, but is always 
busied in sending forth his emissaries 
against the whole human family; so that 
we, already wounded in the soul by origi- 
nal sin, find ourselves under the necessity 
of joining battle with these hellish foes, 
and the fight has no end till life is ex- 
tinct. We are all subject to temptation; 
even the great apostle saw another law 
in his members fighting against the law 
of his mind, and captivating him in the 
law of sin {Rom. vii. 23): he had given to 
him an angel of Satan, to buffet him (2 
Cor. xii. 7 ).St. Peter(/. Ep. v. 8) exhorted 
the faithful to be sober and watch; be- 



204 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

cause their adversary, the devil, as a roar- 
ing lion, was going about, seeking whom 
he might devour. But how escape his 
wiles and avoid surprise, since he lies 
concealed like a serpent and watches the 
favorable moment to strike, and even 
transforms himself sometimes into an 
angel of lightPHe would indeed lead thou- 
sands of souls every day into the depths 
of perdition, but thanks to Mary, the mys- 
tic aurora, the darkness spread around 
by the wicked spirits is dissipated, and 
we are enabled to elude their wiles and 
triumph over sin. The spirits of darkness, 
grown powerful through Eve, are scat- 
tered in flight through Mary (5. Bern.). 
From Eve we have death and darkness, 
from Mary, life and light. Eve was con- 
quered by the treacherous demon; Mary 
conquered and bound him, and like a slave 
he is forced to obey this most powerful 
queen (S. Ber. in Sig. Mag.). The palm is 
the symbol of victory; and Mary is seated 
upon a throne in heaven, conspicuous to 
all engaged in combat, like a lofty palm, 
signifying the victory which all may gain 
who array themselves under her protec- 
tion. I was exalted like a palm tree in 
Cades (EccL xxiv. 18). Holofernes, a sym- 
bol of Satan, with his Assyrian soldiers, 
was besieging the city of Bethulia. Mary 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 205 

behaves in a similar manner with regard to 
Christians when they are assailed by temp- 
tation. Let us therefore conclude with St. 
Bonaventure (in Spec?), in the same man- 
ner that thieves and robbers take to flight 
at the first break of dawn, as if the image 
of death appeared before them, so the 
infernal enemies turn and flee when they 
discover that their schemes are laid open 
by the kindness and mercy of Mary. 

ASPIRATION. 

Mother, in thy kindness, pray for us all. 

PRACTICE 

Make an act of sincere contrition for 
all your sins. 

LITANY. 

Read " The Foot of Cross" by Fr, Faber, 



TWENTIETH DAY. 

MARY, MOTHER OF HUMILITY. 

"While the king was at his repose, my spike- 
nard sent forth the odor thereof." Cant. i. n. 

TN reading the inspired books of Script- 
^ure, our hearts are so fired with divine 
love, and our minds so filled with spirit- 



206 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



ual sweetness, that we seem to have a- 
bandoned earth, and to find ourselves 
rapt in ecstasy in the blessed region of 
the contemplatives in heaven. The Gos- 
pels are all sublime; but the Gospel of St. 
John is conspicuous with a glory peculiar 
to itself. This holy apostle, in his first 
flight, rose to the bosom of Almighty God, 
and there contemplated theEternal Word, 
the majesty of the only-begotten, by 
whom all things were made, and without 
whom was made nothing that was made. 
If amongst the Gospels the most sublime 
is that of St. John, the book of Canticles 
is the most sublime of all the books of 
the Old Testament. Its very title, Canti- 
cle of Canticles, points to its meaning hid- 
den in the words, and manifests its tran- 
scendent sublimity; for whilst in this nup- 
tial Canticle the tender love and affec- 
tionate expressions of two spouses are 
reported,the Fathers and sacred exposi- 
tors assure us that God, the Church, the 
just soul, and especially the Blessed Vir- 
gin are mystically signified. Mary is un- 
doubtedly prefigured in the spouse, be- 
cause she is among the other saints as the 
moon among the stars; because the incar- 
nation of the Word, and consequently 
his espousals with the Church, were 
accomplished in her and by her means; 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 207 

and because the flesh of Christ, assumed 
by the Word, was the flesh of the Virgin 
Mary, — hence, when the Word united 
flesh with himself, he, in a manner, united 
with himself the most holy Virgin {Corn, 
a Lap.). In the book of Canticles every 
phrase, every expression,every word,com- 
ing from God and tending to God, in- 
spires holiness, respect, and veneration. 
If you ask of the Fathers of the Church 
what the meaning is of those words of 
the spouse of the Canticles, While the 
king was at his repose, my spikenard sent 
forth the odor thereof, they will reply, 
that by the spikenard is signified the hu- 
mility of Mary, which pleased God so 
much that he took flesh in her bosom. We 
have already touched upon the subject of 
which we intend to treat in the present 
consideration — the profound humility of 
Mary of which the spikenard was a sym- 
bol. As the spikenard is a rare perfume, 
the delicious fragrance of which attracts 
the admiration of the passers by, so the 
humility of Mary, raising its sweetness 
even to heaven, moved the Almighty, 
turned towards her his gaze, and in.duced 
him to select her for his mother {St. Bon. 
in Spec. ch. 4). That we may learn from 
Mary to cultivate this heavenly virtue, 
let us consider the fruits which it pro- 



208 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



duced in her, and the manner to practise 
it. 

I. 

There are two kinds of humility — the 
one of mind, the other of heart. This 
virtue has three principal degrees. The 
first degree consists, not only in feeling 
our nothingness before God, and that of 
ourselves we possess nothing but misery 
and weakness, but also in disesteeming 
ourselves, and reputing ourselves un- 
worthy of the esteem of men. The second 
consists in bearing with patience the con- 
tempt of others. The third loves re- 
proaches and injuries and goes in search 
of them. This is the manner in which it 
is necessary to proceed in order to assimi- 
late ourselves to the Son of God, despised 
and vilified. 
Amongst all the virtues most constantly 
exercised by our divine Savior, the first 
is humility. From the first breath that 
he drew in his mother's bosom till his last 
sigh upon the cross, all his footsteps 
were marked with humility and humilia- 
tion. He chose to be born of a poor and 
humble mother; in his circumcision he 
assumed the character of a sinner; he 
passed thirty years almost wholly un- 
known in the shop of an artisan; he was 



\ 



THE MONTH OF OUR LA DY. 209 

afterwards regarded with disdain, and 
cruelly persecuted by those for whom he 
had given innumerable proofs of benev- 
olence. The Holy Virgin, after Jesus 
Christ, loved and cultivated in the highest 
degree this incomparable virtue. 

It is related by the holy Fathers that 
Mary, a child of three years of age, began 
to manifest her humility, when by divine 
inspiration she presented herself at the 
temple, and dedicated herself to Almighty 
God. She knew that she herself and all 
other creatures belonged entirely to God; 
but she wished to make a solemn attesta- 
tion of her subjection, by pronouncing in 
his honor a vow of perpetual virginity. 
By this act Mary abandoned the world, 
withdrew from the eyes of men, and re- 
tired from her parents in order to unite 
herself more intimately with God. She 
renounced the hopes of the Hebrew 
women, who were all ambitious of the 
fortune of giving birth to the Messias, and 
esteemed it a disgrace to be destitute of 
posterity. Mary, to give herself entirely 
to God, sacrificed to him, also, her in- 
dividual liberty, so that she might have 
said to the Almighty: Lord,Thou hast not 
wished from me holocausts or victims; the 
blood of bulls and goats was not pleasing 
to thee. Behold me, O Lord, prompt to 



210 THE MONTH OF OUR LAD Y. 

hearken to the voice of thy holy inspira- 
tion, and to offer in sacrifice my body and 
soul, and subjecting myself utterly to thy 
most holy pleasure. This sacrifice was 
most acceptable to God; and Mary, as was 
said of the Saviour, increased in wisdom, 
and age, and grace with God and men 
{Luke 11. 52). 

Mary was pleasing to God on account 
of her virginity, but on account of her hu- 
mility she was chosen to be his mother, 
says St. Bernard {Horn. sup.Mzss. est. ). 
The Spouse of the Canticles says to his 
spouse: Thou hast wounded my heart, my 
sister, my spouse, thou hast wounded my 
heart with one hair of thy neck {Cant. 
iv. 9 ). This one hair of the neck of the 
spouse, according to Rupertus, was the 
humble opinion which Mary had of her- 
self, with which she wounded the heart of 
God. When the time appointed for the 
redemption of man had arrived, the Angel 
Gabriel was sent to the lowly Virgin Mary 
to announce to her that she was to be the 
mother of God. She well understood the 
sublime dignity proffered to her but in 
her humility she declined it, alleging as a 
motive that she had consecrated her vir- 
ginity to Almighty God, and could not, 
without guilt, violate her promise. Sat- 
isfied that her virginity would remain in- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



211 



violate, she signified her acceptance of 
the dignity of mother of God by saying: 
Behold the handmaid of the Lord. O 
wonderful, profound humility of Mary! 
One of the noblest of the angels engages 
in conversation with her; he salutes her 
as fu 11 of grace, and promises her that the 
Holy Ghost shall come upon her. Mary 
is elevated to the honor of the mother of 
God; she is preferred to all creatures; she 
is made queen of heaven and earth; still, 
instead of being puffed up with pride, she 
bends her eyes and head to the eartn, and 
humbly says: Behold the handmaid of the 
Lord. There is no great difficulty -to be 
humble in abjection, but to preserve 
humility in the midst of honors is most 
exalted virtue. The greater thou art, the 
more humble thyself in all things, and 
thou shalt find grace before God, says 
Ecclesiasticus (ii. 20). Mary followed this 
advice and her glory was in proportion. 
The more Lofty an edifice is to be, the 
deeper should be the foundations, and the 
more we are devoted to holy humility, the 
greater will be our glory. We on the 
contrary, if fortune favors us with honors, 
forget what we were before. We esteem 
ourselves great and worthy, because men 
who are led by external appearances 
alone, attach greatness and worthiness to 
the position which we occupy. 



212 THE MONTH OP OUR LADY. 

Mary, after having conceived by the 
Holy Ghost, went into the mountainous 
country with haste, into a city of Juda, to 
visit her cousin Elizabeth. This visit in 
Mary was not a mere matter of curiosity, 
but a mystery in which her humility shone 
forth conspicuously. She no longer calls 
herself the handmaid of the Lord, but ex- 
hibits herself as the servant of the creat- 
ure. She humbles herself to others when 
she might justly elevate herself above 
them. She comports herself as a servant, 
when she has been invested with the 
right of commanding all creatures. 
Elizabeth was rilled with wonder at the 
visit of Mary; but what is more surprising, 
she went not to be ministered to, but to 
console,congratulate,and minister to Eliz- 
abeth. The more she was enriched with 
heavenly favors the more Mary humbled 
herself, never forgetting that all she 
possessed was a gratuitous gift of God. 
St. Bernard very appropriately remarks, 
that, after the Son of God, no creature was 
ever so highly exalted as Mary, because 
none other ever descended to the depths 
of Mary's humility. It is easy now to 
understand that the love of humility be- 
sides obtaining the love of God and the 
treasures of his grace, conquers the prin- 
cipal and worst of vices, the source of all 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 213 

evils and sins on the authority of the 
Holy Ghost. And this vice, this peren- 
nial source of sin, is pride. The humble 
man also, is master of himself; for he 
easily quells the tumult of passion and 
thus secures that peace of heart which 
immeasurably surpasses all earthly joy. 
II. 

But in what manner did Mary exercise 
humility? As was before observed, there 
are two species of humility — theone of un- 
derstanding, or judgment, and the other 
of will. Humility of judgment, according 
to St. Bernard, consists in thinking hum- 
bly of ourselves, and esteeming ourselves 
the vile, miserable creatures whicn we are 
in reality. It is certain, by a truth, that 
of ourselves we are a mere nothing — we 
are foolish, unsuited for operating virtu- 
ously; we can claim, as our own, only defects 
and sins, and this should make us consider 
ourselves less than nothing. We live, we 
move, and we are, because God so wishes 
it, and all the good that we perform a- 
rises from virtue communicated to us by 
Almighty God. Without him we can do 
nothing. The truly humble view them- 
selves according to this truth; they ap- 
propriate to themselves nothing but evils, 
they are unwilling to receive the praises 
of men, they believe themselves worthy 
of blame, they think that oension and con- 



214 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

tempt are what they deserve; and thus 
they become most dear to the Almighty. 
The more worthless a man is in his own 
estimation, says St. Gregory, the more 
precious he becomes in the eyes of God, 
Humility of will consists in desiring to 
be disesteemed,and taking pleasure in in- 
juries and insults. This humility is more 
meritorious because we gain more before 
God by the acts of the will than by those 
of the understanding, and this is the hu- 
mility of heart which our Savior taught 
by word and example. Learn of mebecause 
I am meek and humble of heart {Matt. xi. 
29). 

From what has been already said, it is 
evident that Mary was assiduous in the 
practice of humility of both will and un- 
derstanding. But one of the most lum- 
inous examples of humility of will is that 
which she left us in her purification. Mary 
was the fairest, the purest, the most high- 
ly privileged of all mere creatures; she 
was the mother of the eternal Word made 
man. She was conceived and born in 
holiness; she grew like a fruitful olive in 
the house of the Lord, enjoying his per- 
petual benediction ; she conceived by the 
Holy Ghost, and brought forth her Son 
without pain, without prejudice to her vir- 
ginal purity. Still she voluntarily submit- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 215 

ted to the law which had been imposed 
upon other women to present themselves 
at the temple for purification. From the 
love which she cherished for the fairest 
of virtues, virginity, we may readily con- 
clude what a sacrifice she made on the day 
of her purification by appearing before 
the public as a woman sullied with sin. 
Mary thought not of her privileges ; it 
was enough for her that she was exercis- 
ing an act of humility and religion. Her 
Son submitted to the law of circumcision, 
although the Lord of the law; and she 
wished to submit to the law of purifica- 
tion, although not bound by its provis- 
ions. After the example of Christ, can 
greater examples of humility and self-a- 
basement be found than those which Mary 
has bequeathed to us ? 

ASPIRATION. 

Holy Mother, teach me true humility. 

PRACTICE. 

Avoid self-praise, and bear blame pa- 
tiently. 

LITANY. 

Read ''Life of Our Lady' by M. P. 



216 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



TWENTY-FJRST DAY. 

POWER OF MARY. 

"Blessed be thy speech, and blessed be thou . 
who hast kept me to-day from coming to blood, 
and revenging me with my own hand." I Kings 
xxv. 33. 

lyrARY is nut only a loving mother to 
those who devoutly honor her, but 
she is also the mother of sinners; for this 
reason, as is indicated in the conduct of 
Abigail, a figure of Mary, she exerts her- 
self continuously to soften the divine an- 
ger justiy enkindled against us when we 
fall into sin. David, in the wilderness of 
Pharan, being destitute of food, asked of 
Nabal, a very wealthy man, the provisions 
necessary for the sustenance of himself 
and his companions. Nabal gave a churl- 
ish refusal to the servants of David, and 
added to the refusal reproaches and con- 
tempt. This conduct excited the anger 
of David, and taking with himself four 
hundred armed men. he set out for the 
house of Nabal, swearing to exterminate 
him and his whole family. But the pru- 
dent Abigail met David with presents, 
and appeased by her entreaties his indig- 
nation against Nabal. David, grown 



THE MONTH OB OUR LADY. 217 



calm, exclaimed: Blessed be thy speech, 
and blessed be thou, who hast kept me 
to day from coming to blood, and reveng- 
ing me with my own hand. Go in 
peace into thy house; behold! I have 
heard thy voice, and have honored thy 
face. Let us now reflect upon the mys- 
tical signification of this scriptural nar- 
rative. God requires of sinners the wor- 
ship which is due to him, and the per- 
formance of good works, but he receives 
from them instead, offences and insults. 
Justly indignant, he determines to take 
signal vengeance of bis impious creatures. 
But the blow of destruction is about to 
descend, when Mary, the mystic Abigail, 
prostrates herself at the feet of her Son, 
and says to him: Calm thyself, my Son, 
calm thyself. Thou mightest justly pun- 
ish the rebellious sinner, because he de- 
nies to thee the homage of subjection and 
love to which thou hast a right, but even 
if he has disregarded his duty, I will not 
resign my office of advocate of sinners. 
If thou seest them deficient in good 
works, consider the abundance of merits 
•in me, thy mother. Whilst thou wast in 
agony on the cross, thou freely gavest 
me to all sinners for a mother. I regard 
them as my adopted children. Can a 
mother forget her offspring? No, never. 



218 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

Then, until they have made their peace 
with thee, I will continue to protect them. 
Mary, in this manner, intercedes for sin- 
ners, and every day many return to God. 
Let us consider, now, that Mary is power- 
ful for the salvation of all, and more es- 
pecially for the salvation of repentant 
sinners. j 

There exists no more frightful monster 
than sin. It creates such disorder and 
deformity in the soul, that the Almighty, 
were he not restrained by his mercy, 
would immediately inflict the most fear- 
ful chastisements upon the sinner. In 
the beginning, the angels were created 
and adorned with extraordinary holiness 
and grace; they were resplendent like 
stars, and Lucifer in their midst shone 
like the sun. But pride took possession of 
a large number of them, and they rose up 
in rebellion against their Creator; instant- 
ly they were hurled from the highest 
heaven into the deepest hell ; from angels 
they were transformed into demons ; and 
Lucifer, the brightest spirit in heaven, be- 
came the foulest, the most hideous mon- 
ster of perdition. Adam was created, and 
constituted in the state of original justice, 
but scarcely had he yielded to the solic- 
itations of Eve, and thus offended God, 
when he was struck by Divine maledic- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



219 



lion, and afflicted with innumerable mis- 
fortunes in body and soul, The men who 
lived before the deluge, forgetting the 
justice of God, the chastiser of sin, and 
disregarding reason, surrendered them- 
selves to the gratification of their animal 
appetites, and God, in the fury of his 
wrath, opening the flood-gates of heav- 
en, and breaking up the fountains of the 
great deep (Gen. vii. n), submerged in the 
waters of the deluge all living creatures 
on the face of the earth. Sodom and 
Gomorrha sinned, and the Lord rained 
down brimstone and fire out of heaven, 
and consumed those wicked cities with 
the whole country round about, and all 
the inhabitants {Gen. xix. 25). The Is- 
raelites sinned in the desert, and out of 
six .hundred thousand men fit to bear 
arms, Josue and Caleb alone arrived 
safe at the land of promise {Numb, xiv, 
30). What are we, then, to do, who so 
easily fall into sin ? Who will defend us 
against the rigor of God's justice ? The 
Fathers reply, that Mary is our advocate, 
and an advocate so powerful that she can 
save us all. 

Mary most certainly loved us with ex- 
ceeding great love. Of this she gave ev- 
ident proof when she consented to the 
Incarnation of the Divine Word, that the 



220 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

human race might be rescued from the 
evils occasioned by sin. The accomplish- 
ment of the glorious mystery of the In- 
carnation depended on the answer of 
Mary to the Angel Gabriel, and in the 
eternal decrees of the Almighty, one of 
the requisite conditions for the Incarna- 
tion was free and full consent of Mary. 
This is the essential obligation under 
which we lie to the Queen of Vir- 
gins ; for it is a point of faith that, 
through her, Christ has been given to 
us, and that to her we are indebted for a 
Savior. If the Son of God descended 
from heaven to earth — if, in the most pure 
bosom of Mary, he was made man for 
the salvation of man, this was done the 
very instant she said, and because she 
said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; 
be it done to me according to Thy word. 
The Blessed Virgin did not redeem us, 
nor did she, in the strictest sense merit 
anything for us ; still by impetration, by 
merit in a wide sense, and by contribut- 
ing by her consent to the Incarnation of 
the Word, she cooperated in some man- 
ner in our redemption. Mary, says St. 
Antoninus, gave birth, for us, to him who 
created anew or regenerated us all by his 
passion. The Lord, says Richard of St. 
Lawrence (c i. de Laud. V.), was with Mary, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



221 



and Mary was with the Lord in the same 
labor, and the same work of our redemp- 
tion. The Mother of Mercy aided the 
Father of mercies in the work of our sal- 
vation. The Lord said of Adam: It is not 
good for man to be alone ; let us make 
him a help like unto himself (Gen. ii. 18). 
But Eve was of no help to Adam; she 
was the cause of his destruction. But 
this new Eve was of help; she is the Ja- 
hal into whose hands Sisara was deliver- 
ed; she is the Judith who threw into con- 
fusion the house of Nabuchodonosor. 
Mary, therefore, may be justly said to 
have cooperated in the redemption of 
man. 

Another great proof of the protection 
of Mary is deduced from what is recorded 
in holy Gospels as having occurred when 
man's redemption was on the -point of be- 
ing consummated. The Savior was about 
to expire on the cross, a victim for the 
salvation of all mankind. He was racked 
by the severest sufferings. Mary and 
John, at the foot of the cross, tasted the 
bitterness of his passion. The dying Je- 
susopens his eyes, and beholds his tender 
mother and his beloved disciple, weighed 
downwith sorrow on his account. He feels 
compassion for them, and reflecting that 
the mother remains deprived of her Son 



222 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



and the disciple of his master, he wishes 
to console them. He says to his mother: 
In John behold thy son; and to John, In 
Mary behold thy mother — Woman, be- 
hold thy son. After that he saith to the 
disciple, Behold thy mother {John xix. 
26). These words increase the affliction 
of Mary, but she penetrates their myster- 
ious sense, and kindly accepts the charge 
imposed upon her — a charge full of con- 
solation for us. We were born again in- 
to life under the saving wood of the 
cross, as we have incurred death under 
the tree of sin. We see, therefore, that 
our Redeemer having us all before his 
eyes in his beloved disciple, and aiming 
at naught by his passion but our wel- 
fare, wished us to possess a mother in 
Mary, and a loving and powerful mother. 

If Mary cooperated in our redemption, 
if she is the mother of God, and if Jesus 
Christ committed us to her charge, as her 
children of adoption, we have many and 
weighty titles of confidence in her pat- 
ronage. Christ was our Redeemer, be- 
cause, to liberate us from the slavery of 
Satan, he took upon himself human flesh, 
and died for our salvation, but being a 
priest forever he is able also to save for- 
ever them that come unto God by him- 
self; always living to make intercession 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 223 



for us (Heb. vii. 25 ). Mary likewise lives 
in heaven, and still discharges the office 
of our mediatrix. If you fear, says St. Ber- 
nard to the sinner {Serin, de Aquoed.), if 
you fear to approach the Father, he has 
given you Jesus as a mediator; if you de- 
sire an advocate before Jesus, have re- 
course to Mary. If our adversary and 
accuser, the devil, says Gerson, endeav- 
ors to crush us in any way, we possess in 
Mary a most kind patroness, a most wise 
advocate, and a most powerful ally, pro- 
claimed by the whole Church the Queen 
of Mercy and our protectress. Who, ex- 
claims a holy servant of Mary, who after 
Christ is more watchful over the welfare 
of the human race, than thou art? Who 
shields us in our afflictions, if thou dost 
not ? Who furnishes us with the assist- 
ance, and delivers us from temptation? 
Who, by prayer and supplication, combats 
more strenuously in favor of sinners? No 
one obtains salvation, unless through 
thee,0 Virgin most holy ! No one escapes 
from evils, unless through thy patronage, 
O Virgin most pure ! 

Mary is, moreover, a most powerful ad- 
vocate, because she is the mother of 
Jesus. He, although in virtue of the 
hypostatic union with the person of the 
Lord, enjoys supreme dominion over all 



224 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

men and also over Mary; as long as he 
remained on earth he was subject to heras 
his mother. Hence, according to St. 
Bonaventure and St. Peter Damian, she 
possesses even now, with her Son, the 
power to obtain tor us whatsoever she 
wishes, and to excite to hope of salvation 
the most obdurate and abandoned. Mary, 
while on earth, consoled the spouses 
of Cana when wine failed them; will she 
neglect to console the faithful, that they 
may be strengthened for the acquisition 
of heaven? Mary has obtained from her 
Son man\- temporal favors; will she not 
obtain for us spiritual blessings? The Vir- 
gin, says the Angelic Doctor, holds one 
half of the authority of heaven; she is the 
Queen of Mercy; to her Son is reserved 
the empire of justice. 

II. 

Her power to give assistance, and lead 
to salvation, Mary exercises in an es- 
pecial manner in favor of sinners. She 
has been appointed our mother by the 
Redeemer, and we are her children by 
adoption. If a son is attacked by disease, 
or cast into prison, his mother watches by 
his side night and day. until his health is 
re-established, or spares no exertions to 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 225 

effect his liberation. Mary acts in the 
same manner towards sinners. When a 
man falls into sin, he loses the grace of 
God; he loses all merit; he grows feeble in 
spirit, and of his own will stretches forth 
his hands to receive the manacles of the 
enemy of God. The sinner does not per- 
ceive his own miserable state; he does 
not understand that in renouncing heaven 
he is rushing headlong into an im- 
mense ocean of torments in the regions 
of eternal woe. Mary feels compassion 
for him; she never loses sight of him; on 
the part of God she stings his heart with 
remorse; she obtains light for his mind, 
and inclinations to repentance for his 
will; and she never ceases to pray and 
supplicate, until she sees him loosed from 
the bonds of sin, and restored to the life 
of grace. The interposition of the angels 
and saints is powerful in behalf of sin- 
ners; but much more powerful is that 
of Mary, for she recruited a number of 
angels diminished by the rebellion, and 
reconciled human nature with Almighty 
God, by giving birth to Jesus Christ. 
How many would be lost forever, how 
many would remain in their blindness, 
and precipitate into the abyss in despera- 
tion, were it not for the influence of the 
Blessed Virgin with her Son! Mary is a 



226 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

wall of defense for those who have re- 
course to her, and her mercy is a power of 
refuge. Mary was prefigured in the ark 
of Noe, which furnished protection not 
only to the family of Noe but also to ir- 
rational animals. Under the mantle of 
Mary, not only the just find shelter, but 
sinners also, who by their vices have de- 
graded themselves to the level of brutes. 
Mary is the dove of Noe, bearing a branch 
of olives in sign of the peace which the 
Almighty grants to men. Mary is the kind 
Rebecca,who gave to drink not only to the 
servant of Abraham but also to his camel. 
Mary is the prudent Abigail who appeases 
the anger of David and restrained him from 
revenge. Mary, by her entreaties, frequent- 
ly restrains the avenging arm of God, al- 
ready lifted to strike, and obtains for sin- 
ners a return to grace, and the happy lot 
of becoming children of God instead of 
children of wrath. The rainbow round 
about the throne of God, which was seen 
by St. John (Aftoc. iv. 3), was also a figure 
of Mary; she is ever present before the 
throne, to mitigate the severityof sinners. 
After the deluge, the Lord said to Noe : 
This is the sign of the covenant which I 
give between me and you: I will set my 
bow in the clouds, and it shall be the sign 
of a covenant between me and between 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 227 

the earth: and I shall see it, and shall re- 
member the everlasting covenant {Gen, 
ix. 12). The Fathers teach us that Mary is 
this bow of everlasting peace. When the 
prayers of Mary ascend before the pres- 
ence of God, he grants to sinners the re- 
demption of their sins, and forms with 
them an alliance of friendship. We may, 
therefore, conclude with St. Anselm, that 
Mary was made the mother of God more 
for sinners than for the just, as Christ 
came to call not the just, but sinners. 

ASPIRATION. 

Fiom God's anger protect us, holy Vir- 
gin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Implore frequently the protection of 
the Blessed Virgin. 

LITANY. 

Read the Ave Maria. 



228 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



TWENTY-SECOND DAY. 

MARY, MOTHER OF SUCCOR AND COMPAS- 
SION. 

' 'When Michol, David's wife, had told him 
this, she let him down through the window, and 
he escaped." I Kings xix. n. 

SAUL, filled with envy. persecuted David 
and sought his death. He on one oc- 
casion endeavored to nail David to the 
wall with his spear, but the spear missed 
him and David fled and escaped thatnight. 
Saul, therefore, sent his guards to David's 
house to watch him that he might be 
killed in the morning {\ Kings xix. 10). 
But the faithful Michol, having been in- 
formed of the designs of the envious king 
against her innocent husband, said to 
David: Unless thou save thyself this 
night, to-morrow thou wilt die. She 
let him down through a window during 
the darkness of the night, and he fled 
and took refuge with Samuel in Najoth 
of Ramatha. Michol was a figure of 
Mary; but Michol's one act of benefi- 
cence was confined to David, whereas, 
Mary's acts of beneficence are without 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 229 

number and extend their influence to the 
whole human race. Lucifer still retains 
his envious malice, and endeavors to sat- 
isfy it by dragging the creatures of God 
along with himself into eternal torments. 
He watches with great sagacity, and takes 
advantage of the circumstances favorable 
to an attack; he at onetime makes open 
war upon man, and at another endeavors 
to circumvent him by hidden approaches. 
The just man he strives to despoil of his 
justice; the sinner he labors to involve 
more thoroughly in sin and lead to utter 
desperation. The life of man on earth 
thus becomes a continual warfare^^. vii. 
j). What is man to do? What angel 
will guard him ? Where shall he find a 
harbor of salvation? The Church replies: 
Mary, O sinner, is thy guardian angel; 
Mary is thy port of refuge; Mary is thy 
Michol. Mary compassionates us in our 
misfortunes and is a mother of succor and 
compassion, for the just that they may 
persevere, for sinners that they may re- 
pent and do penance for their sins. 

I. 

Man is made just by sanctifying grace. 
Grace is a divine gift, a supernatural qual- 
ity, infused into the soul by the Almighty, 



230 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

which, purifying the soul from the stains 
of sin and rendering it acceptable to the 
Most High, makes us children of God and 
heirs of the kingdom of heaven. With 
grace are united the infused virtues and 
the gifts of the Holy Ghost. But every 
thing in the spiritual life depends upon 
sanctifying grace. For, as the soul 
by means of its natural faculties pro- 
duces its operations, so sanctifying grace 
by means of the infused virtues and spirit- 
ual gifts accomplishes its supernatural 
works. The just man lives and operates 
by faith, hope, charity, and other virtues; 
just as the soul has knowledge of things 
by means of the understanding, recalls 
the past by means of the memory, and 
determines its operations by the will. 
As the soul is the principle and cause of 
natural life, grace is the principle and 
cause of supernatural life. The soul is 
never deprived of its natural faculties and 
grace is never without its virtues and 
supernatural gifts. They are inseparable 
from it. 

It is easy now to understand how 
highly sanctifying grace should be es- 
teemed and how diligently it should be 
guarded. Grace is a treasure laid up in 
the soul, but we carry this treasure in 
earthen vessels. We are in danger of be- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 231 

ing robbed of it by powerful enemies, such 
as the world, the devil, and the flesh* 
God without being asked grants many 
graces; but these are, for the most part, of 
ordinary character. He has not promised 
to grant extraordinary graces unless to 
those who beg them earnestly. This is 
the common opinion of theologians, and 
it seems indicated in the words of Christ. 
Watch ye, therefore, praying at all times 
that you may be accounted worthy to es- 
cape all these things that are to come, and 
to stand before the Son of man {Luke xxi. 
36). AH men need an especial grace to be 
able to persevere in the friendship of God 
to the very last instant of life; and one of 
the principal means assigned by God for 
obtaining this grace is prayer. After a 
man has been justified by grace, says St. 
Thomas (i. 2.q. 109; a. 10.), it is necessary 
for him to beg of God the gift of perse- 
verance, that he may be preserved from 
sin to the end of his days. For to many 
grace is given to whom it is not given 
toperseverein grace. St. James, writing to 
all the faithful, says: If any of you want 
wisdom let him ask of God, who giveth to 
all abundantly, and upbraideth not, and 
it shall be given to him (i. 5 ). If we are 
truly devout to Mary, we shall be able to 
preserve the treasure of grace and obtain 



232 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

final perseverance; for, in the opinion of 
the Fathers, all the graces which God be- 
stows on us pass through the hands of 
Mary. 

The Church calls the Blessed Virgin 
our life and our hope. Therefore, with 
her intercession, we maintain ourselves 
in grace and all reach heaven. The Church 
itself represents Mary as uttering the fol- 
lowing words: I made that in the heavens 
there should rise light that never faileth; 
and as a cloud I covered all the earth. 
1 am the Mother of fair love, and of fear, 
and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In 
me is all grace of the way and of the 
truth; in me is all hopeof life and of virtue. 
Come over to me, all ye that desire me, 
and be filled with my fruits; for my spirit 
is sweet above honey and the honeycomb. 
My memory is unto everlasting genera- 
tions. He that hearkeneth to me shall 
not be confounded, and they that work 
by me shall not sin (Eccl. xxiv. ). To 
preserve ourselves in grace, spiritual for- 
titude in resisting all our enemies is nec- 
essary, and the gifts of God are indis- 
pensable. But we acquire all that is re- 
quisite by having recourse to Mary. She 
thus continues to address us: O ye men, to 
you I call, and my voice is to the sons of 
men. Counsel and equity are mine; pru- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 233 



dence is mine; strength is mine. By me 
kings reign, and lawgivers decree just 
things. By me princes rule, and the 
mighty decree justice. With me are riches 
and glory, glorious riches and justice. 
For my fruit is better than gold and the 
precious stones, and my blossoms than 
choice silver. I walk in the way of justice, 
in the midst of the paths of judgment, 
that I may enrich them that love me and 
fill their treasures (Prov. viii.). As the 
Church and the Fathers particularly refer 
to Mary in a mystical sense all that is con- 
tained in the books of Proverbs and of 
Ecclesiasticus, it is apparent how the 
faithful on the earth by means of Mary 
govern their senses and passions, so as to 
be able to persevere to the end and se- 
cure eternal happiness. 

Mary, not without mystic meaning, is 
likened to the fairest and most elegant 
objects in nature, She is compared to 
the cedar because by her beneficent in- 
fluence she puts to flight the infernal ser- 
pent; to the cypress, because she in- 
spires the fragrance of holiness and saint- 
ly repute; to the palm, because she makes 
us victorious over ourselves; to the vine, 
because she leads us to produce fruits of 
heavenly virtues; to the olive, because she 
brings peace to the soul; to oil, to signify 



234 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the grace which she obtains for us from 
God; to the plane tree, because she defends 
us against our passions; to the rose, on ac- 
count of the divine love which she ex- 
cites in our hearts; to the lily, because 
she breathes purity into the soul; and 
to nard, because she invests Christian 
humility with sweetness. Mary, as 
the dawn, sends down the first rays of 
light to the sinner for his conversion; as 
the sun, she guides us along the 
pathway of life; as the moon, she enlight- 
ens us in darkness of spirit resulting 
from human weakness; as a star, she con- 
ducts us safely to the harbor of paradise- 
The Holy Virgin even on earth was always 
prompt to offer relief to the afflicted and 
unfortunate, and we know that she en- 
joyed the privilege of having all her re- 
quests complied with. At the marriage 
at Cana of Galilee, when the wine failed, 
she said to Jesus, They have no wine 
{John ii. 3). And Jesus said to her: Wo- 
man, what is that to me and thee? My 
hour is not yet come. Although Jesus 
seemed to refuse to perform a miracle, she 
said with confidence to the waiters: What- 
soever he shall say to you, do ye. And 
Jesus finally converted water into wine. 
Although the Redeemer, says St. Thom- 
as, had determined to perform no miracle 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 235 



until his public life should commence, he 
yielded to the request of his mother, and 
out of regard for her, wrought the first 
of his wonders. 

All the saints of heaven enjoy from 
God a certain right of patronage, in virtue 
of which they can render assistance to 
those who apply to themselves; but the 
Blessed Virgin, being queen of saints and 
angels, possesses from God a most ex- 
traordinary power by which she is the 
patroness and advocate of all men. And 
the more faithfully and sincerely she is 
honored by men, the more actively is her 
patronage called forth in their favor. She 
is not only the servant of God's predilec- 
tion and his fondly cherished daughter, 
but she is the mother of God himself 
and the spouse of the Holy Ghost. No 
other creature can obtain from God the 
graces which Mary, mother of God, can 
obtain for her servants in their necessi- 
ties. One sigh of Mary's is more potent 
than the suffrages of all the saints. Mary 
is therefore for the just man a mother of 
succor and compassion, through whom 
he is enabled to persevere in the grace 
mercifully bestowed by Almighty God. 



236 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



II. 

Mary gives succor to sinners to enable 
them to rise from the unhappy state of 
sin. The sinner is in a most deplorable 
condition. He lives, indeed, an animal 
life, but is utterly destitute of spiritual life. 
He may be compared to a blind man, who, 
if he has not some one to lead him con- 
stantly by the hand,goes groping about, in 
danger every moment of falling into a pit 
or down a precipice. He may also be com- 
pared to the idols of the Gentiles, which, 
says the Psalmist [Ps. cxv.), have eyes 
and see not, ears and hear not, mouths and 
speak not, hands and feel not, feet and 
walk not. The sinner has eyes and sees not, 
because in the darkness which surrounds 
him he cannot distinguish truth from 
falsehood; he has ears and hears not, be- 
cause he either does not listen to the 
word of God, or, if he listens to it, having 
his mind crowded with earthly thoughts 
he occupies himself with these alone; he 
has a tongue and tastes not, because, hab- 
ituated to the corruption of vile pleasure, 
he finds no relish in virtue; he has hands, 
but he applies them not to works of sal- 
vation; he has feet, but instead of walking 
in the way of righteousness, he rushes 
headlong into the vortex of crimes. To 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 237 



be able to act, the blind man wants light, 
and the idol, life. The sinner, in like 
manner, lying helpless in the darkness of 
his iniquities, in order to rise from his un- 
happy condition and perform works of 
spiritual life, requires the light and aid 
of the grace of God. 

But. Mary is trie refuge of sinners. Be- 
fore the birth of Mary, says Richard of 
St. Lawrence, we had none to be our ad- 
vocate with the divine Word. But God 
the Father said: It is not good for man 
to be alone, let us give him a help, and 
let this help be the Blessed Virgin. She 
shall be a mediatrix for the human race 
in the presence of my Son, as my Son 
shall be a mediator in presence of my- 
self. Mary is the mother of grace, and 
the sinner who seeks after her finds grace 
and salvation. He that shall find me 
shall find life, and shall have salvation 
from the Lord (Prov. vii. 3 5) . 

Whilst the Israelites were passing 
through the desert, they were protected 
from the burning heat of the sun by a 
miraculous cloud which the Almighty 
caused to appear in the heavens. Thus 
Mary, say the Fathers, like an interven- 
ing cloud, shelters sinners from the an- 
ger of God and the fury of temptations. 
We may approach God with security 



238 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

whilst the Mother is in presence of the 
Son and the Son in presence of the 
Father. Mary reminds the Son of the 
motherly solicitude with which she 
watched over him, of her anxieties, her 
fears, on his account, of the toils, the 
privations, which he endured; the Son ex- 
hibits to the Father his wounds, his head 
crowned with thorns, the cross on which 
he poured forth his life. Can the Son 
reject the appeals of Mary ? Can the Fa- 
ther look with indifference on the Lamb 
that was slain in his honor? Let us 
therefore conclude with St. Anselm ide 
Excl. V. ii. i), if for the sake of sinners 
Mary was made the mother of God, how 
can any enormity of sin cause us to de- 
spair of pardon? 

ASPIRATION. 

Turn away my eyes, O Lord, that they 
may not behold vanity; quicken me in thy 
way {Ps. cxviii. 37). 

PRACTICE. 

Receive every trial with patience, in 
honor of Jesus and Mary. 

LITANY. 

Read "Chats About the Rosary!' 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 239 



TWENTY-THIRD DAY. 

PATRONAGE OF MARY. 

"The Lord hath blessed thee by his power, be- 
cause by thee he hath brought our enemies to 
naught." Judith xiii. 22. 

T^ULL of anger and indignation, Holo- 
* femes closely besieged Bethulia. Every 
thing portended the approaching fall of 
that unfortunate city. The citizens were 
in a state of extreme destitution, perishing 
of hunger and thirst. Heaven seemed 
deaf to their prayers. Then all gathering 
themselves together to Ozias, all together 
with one voice, said: There is no one to 
help us, while we are cast down before 
the eyes of our enemies in thirst, and 
great destruction. And now assemble ye 
all that are in the city, that we may of our 
ownaccord yield ourselves all up to Holo- 
fernes; for it is better, that being captives 
we should live and bless the Lord, than 
that we should die and be a reproach to 
all flesh(7^'^ vii. 14). When Judith 
heard that Ozias had promised that he 
would deliver up the city after the fifth 
day, she sent for the ancients, and said to 



240 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

them: Who are you that tempt the Lord? 
You have set a time for the mercy of the 
Lord, and you have appointed him a day 
according to your pleasure (Judith vii. 
ii). I have formed a plan for the liber- 
ation of our city, but I desire that you 
search not into what I am doing. Pray 
only that God may strengthen my design. 
She then went forth to combat the ene- 
mies of her country with no other arms 
than thoseof fasting, prayer, beauty, cour- 
age, and holy confidence in God. Judith 
cut off the head of Holofernes, and the 
Assyrian army was broken, put to flight, 
and dispersed. Bethulia was delivered, and 
Judith was celebrated as its saviour. 
Thou, exclaimed the high priest and the 
ancients, thou art the glory of Jerusalem; 
thou art the joy of Israel; thou art the 
honor of our people {Judith xv. 10). In- 
terpreting allegorically with the Fathers 
this historical fact, Holofernes is Satan; 
the Bethulians, the people of God; and 
Judith, Mary our protectress. We live 
indeed in a world of peril; and our adver- 
sary, the devil, as a roaring lion goeth a- 
bout seeking whom he may devour (/. Pet. 
v. 8). But take courage, children of God; 
as Judith delivered the Bethulians, so will 
Mary deliver us from the fangs of the in- 
fernal dragon and all his temptations, if 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 225 

effect his liberation. Mary acts in the 
same manner towards sinners. When a 
man falls into sin, he loses the grace of 
God; he loses all merit; he grows feeble in 
spirit, and of his own will stretches forth 
his hands to receive the manacles of the 
enemy of God. The sinner does not per- 
ceive his own miserable state; he does 
not understand that in renouncing heaven 
he is rushing headlong into an im- 
mense ocean of torments in the regions 
of eternal woe. Mary feels compassion 
for him; she never loses sight of him; on 
the part of God she stings his heart with 
remorse; she obtains light for his mind, 
and inclinations to repentance for his 
will; and she never ceases to pray and 
supplicate, until she sees him loosed from 
the bonds of sin, and restored to the life 
of grace. The interposition of the angels 
and saints is powerful in behalf of sin- 
ners; but much more powerful is that 
of Mary, for she recruited a number of 
angels diminished by the rebellion, and 
reconciled human nature with Almighty 
God, by giving birth to Jesus Christ. 
How many would be lost forever, how 
many would remain in their blindness, 
and precipitate into the abyss in despera- 
tion, were it not for the influence of the 
Blessed Virgin with her Son! Mary is a 



226 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

wall of defense for those who have re- 
course to her, and her mercy is a power of 
refuge. Mary was prefigured in the ark 
of Noe, which furnished protection not 
only to the family of Noe but also to ir- 
rational animals. Under the mantle of 
Mary, not only the just find shelter, but 
sinners also, who by their vices have de- 
graded themselves to the level of brutes. 
Mary is the dove of Noe, bearing a branch 
of olives in sign of the peace which the 
Almighty grants to men. Mary is the kind 
Rebecca,who gave to drink not only to the 
servant of Abraham but also to his camel. 
Mary is the prudent Abigail who appeases 
the anger of David and restrained him from 
revenge. Mary,by her entreaties, frequent- 
ly restrains the avenging arm of God. al- 
ready lifted to strike, and obtains for sin- 
ners a return to grace, arid the happy lot 
of becoming children of God instead of 
children of wrath. The rainbow round 
about the throne of God, which was seen 
by St. John {Aftoc. iv. 3), was also a figure 
of Mary; she is ever present before the 
throne, to mitigate the severityof sinners. 
After the deluge, the Lord said to Noe : 
This is the sign of the covenant which I 
give between me and you: I will set my 
bow in the clouds, and it shall be the sign 
of a covenant between me and between 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 227 

the earth: and I shall see it, and shall re- 
member the everlasting covenant {Gen. 
ix. 12). The Fathers teach us that Mary is 
this bow of everlasting peace. When the 
prayers of Mary ascend before the pres- 
ence of God, he grants to sinners the re- 
demption of their sins, and forms with 
them an alliance of friendship. We may, 
therefore, conclude with St. Anselm, that 
Mary was made the mother of God more 
for sinners than for the just, as Christ 
came to call not the just, but sinners. 

ASPIRATION. 

From God's anger protect us, holy Vir- 
gin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Implore frequently the protection of 
the Blessed Virgin. 

LITANY. 

Read the Ave Maria. 



228 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



TWENTY-SECOND DAY. 

MARY, MOTHER OF SUCCOR AND COMPAS- 
SION. 

"When Michol, David's wife, had told him 
this, she let him down through the window, and 
he escaped." I Kings xix. II. 

SAUL, filled with envy, persecuted David 
and sought his death. He on one oc- 
casion endeavored to nail David to the 
wall with his spear, but the spear missed 
him and David fled and escaped thatnight. 
Saul, therefore, sent his guards to Davie's 
house to watch him that he might be 
killed in the morning (\Kings xix. 10). 
But the faithful Michol, having been in- 
formed of the designs of the envious king 
against her innocent husband, said to 
David: Unless thou save thyself this 
night, to-morrow thou wilt die. She 
let him dow^n through a window during 
the darkness of the night, and he fled 
and took refuge with Samuel in Najoth 
of Ramatha. Michol was a figure of 
Mary; but Michol's one act of benefi- 
cence was confined to David, whereas, 
Mary's acts of beneficence are without 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 229 

number and extend their influence to the 
whole human race. Lucifer still retains 
his envious malice, and endeavors to sat- 
isfy it by dragging the creatures of God 
along with himself into eternal torments. 
He watches with great sagacity,and takes 
advantage of the circumstances favorable 
to an attack; he at onetime makes open 
war upon man, and at another endeavors 
to circumvent him by hidden approaches. 
The just man he strives to despoil of his 
justice; the sinner he labors to involve 
more thoroughly in sin and lead to utter 
desperation. The life of man on earth 
thus becomes a continual warfare(7^. vii. 
j). What is man to do? What angel 
will guard him ? Where shall he find a 
harbor of salvation? The Church replies: 
Mary. O sinner, is thy guardian angel; 
Mary is thy port of refuge-; Mary is thy 
Michol. Mary compassionates us in our 
misfortunes and is a mother of succor and 
compassion, for the just that they may 
persevere, for sinners that they may re- 
pent and do penance for their sins. 

I. 

Man is made just by sanctifying grace. 
Grace is a divine gift, a supernatural qual- 
ity, infused into the soul by the Almighty, 



230 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

which, purifying the soul from the stains 
of sin and rendering it acceptable to the 
Most High, makes us children of God and 
heirs of the kingdom of heaven. With 
grace are united the infused virtues and 
the gifts of the Holy Ghost. But every 
thing in the spiritual life depends upon 
sanctifying grace. For, as the soul 
by means of its natural faculties pro- 
duces its operations, so sanctifying grace 
by means of the infused virtues and spirit- 
ual gifts accomplishes its supernatural 
works. The just man lives and operates 
by faith, hope, charity, and other virtues; 
just as the soul has knowledge of things 
by means of the understanding, recalls 
the past by means of the memory, and 
determines its operations by the will. 
As the soul is the principle and cause of 
natural life, grace is the principle and 
cause of supernatural life. The soul is 
never deprived of its natural faculties and 
grace is never without its virtues and 
supernatural gifts. They are inseparable 
from it. 

It is easy now to understand how 
highly sanctifying grace should be es- 
teemed and how diligently it should be 
guarded. Grace is a treasure laid up in 
the soul, but we carry this treasure in 
earthen vessels. We are in danger of be- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 231 

ing robbed of it by powerful enemies, such 
as the world, the devil, and the flesh* 
God without being asked grants many 
graces; but these are, for the most part, of 
ordinary character. He has not promised 
to grant extraordinary graces unless to 
those who beg them earnestly. This is 
the common opinion of theologians, and 
it seems indicated in the words of Christ. 
Watch ye, therefore, praying at all times 
that you may be accounted worthy to es- 
cape all these things that are to come, and 
to stand before the Son of man {Luke xxi. 
36). All men need an especial grace to be 
able to persevere in the friendship of God 
to the very last instant of life; and one of 
the principal means assigned by God for 
obtaining this grace is prayer. After a 
man has been justified by grace, says St. 
Thomas (i. 2.q. 109; a. 10.), it is necessary 
for him to beg of God the gift of perse- 
verance, that he may be preserved from 
sin to the end of his days. For to many 
grace is given to whom it is not given 
toperseverein grace. St. James, writing to 
all the faithful, says: If any of you want 
wisdom let him ask of God, who giveth to 
all abundantly, and upbraideth not, and 
it shall be given to him (i. 5 ). If we are 
truly devout to Mary, w r e shall be able to 
preserve the treasure of grace and obtain 



232 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

final perseverance; for, in the opinion of 
the Fathers, all the graces which God be- 
stows on us pass through the hands of 
Mary. 

The Church calls the Blessed Virgin 
our life and our hope. Therefore, with 
her intercession, we maintain ourselves 
in grace and all reach heaven. The Church 
itself represents Mary as uttering the fol- 
lowing words: I made that in the heavens 
there should rise light that never faileth; 
and as a cloud I covered all the earth, 
lam the Mother of fair love, and of fear, 
and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In 
me is all grace of the way and of the 
truth; in me is all hope of life and of virtue. 
Come over to me, all ye that desire me, 
and be filled with my fruits; for my spirit 
is sweet above honey and the honeycomb. 
My memory is unto everlasting genera- 
tions. He that hearkeneth to me shall 
not be confounded, and they that work 
by me shall not sin (EccL xxiv. ). To 
preserve ourselves in grace, spiritual for- 
titude in resisting all our enemies is nec- 
essary, and the gifts of God are indis- 
pensable. But we acquire all that is re- 
quisite by having recourse to Mary. She 
thus continues to address us: O ye men, to 
you I call, and my voice is to the sons of 
men. Counsel and equity are mine; pru- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 933 

dence is mine; strength is mine. By me 
kings reign, and lawgivers decree just 
things. By me princes rule, and the 
mighty decree justice. With me are riches 
and glory, glorious riches and justice. 
For my fruit is better than gold and the 
precious stones, and my blossoms than 
choice silver. I walk in the way of justice, 
in the midst of the paths of judgment, 
that I may enrich them that love me and 
fill their treasures (Prov. viii.). As the 
Church and the Fathers particularly refer 
to Mary in a mystical sense all that is con- 
tained in the books of Proverbs and of 
Ecclesiasticus, it is apparent how the 
faithful on the earth by means of Mary 
govern their senses and passions, so as to 
be able to persevere to the end and se- 
cure eternal happiness. 

Mary, not without mystic, meaning, is 
likened to the fairest and most elegant 
objects in nature, She is compared to 
the cedar because by her beneficent in- 
fluence she puts to flight the infernal ser- 
pent; to the cypress, because she in- 
spires the fragrance of holiness and saint- 
ly repute; to the palm, because she makes 
us victorious over ourselves; to the vine, 
because she leads us to produce fruits of 
heavenly virtues; to the olive, because she 
brings peace to the soul; to oil, to signify 



0^4 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

the grace which she obtains for us from 
God; to the plane tree, because she defends 
us against our passions; to the rose, on ac- 
count of the divine love which she ex- 
cites in our hearts; to the lily, because 
she breathes purity into the soul; and 
to nard, because she invests Christian 
humility with sweetness. Mary, as 
the dawn, sends down the first rays of 
light to the sinner for his conversion; as 
the sun, she guides us along the 
pathway of life; as the moon, she enlight- 
ens us in darkness of spirit resulting 
from human weakness; as a star, she con- 
ducts us safely to the harbor of paradise- 
The Holy Virgin even on earth was always 
prompt to offer relief to the afflicted and 
unfortunate, and we know that she en- 
joyed the privilege of having all her re- 
quests complied with. At the marriage 
at Cana of Galilee, when the wine failed, 
she said to Jesus, They have no wine 
{John ii. 3). And Jesus said to her: Wo- 
man, what is that to me and thee? My 
hour is not yet come. Although Jesus 
seemed to refuse to perform a miracle, she 
said with confidence to the waiters: What- 
soever he shall say to you, do ye. And 
Jesus finally converted water into wine. 
Although the Redeemer, says St. Thom- 
as, had determined to perform no miracle 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 235 

until his public life should commence, he 
yielded to the request of his mother, and 
out of regard for her, wrought the first 
of his wonders. 

All the saints of heaven enjoy from 
God a certain right of patronage, in virtue 
of which they can render assistance to 
those who apply to themselves; but the 
Blessed Virgin, being queen of saints and 
angels, possesses from God a most ex- 
traordinary power by which she is the 
patroness and advocate of all men, And 
the more faithfully and sincerely she is 
honored by men, the more actively is her 
patronage called forth in their favor. She 
is not only the servant of God's predilec- 
tion and his fondly cherished daughter, 
but she is the mother of God himself 
and the spouse of the Holy Ghost, No 
other creature can obtain from God the 
graces which Mary, mother of God, can 
obtain for her servants in their necessi- 
ties. One sigh of Mary's is more potent 
than the suffrages of all the saints. Mary 
is therefore for the just man a mother of 
succor and compassion, through whom 
he is enabled to persevere in the grace 
mercifully bestowed by Almighty God. 



236 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



II. 

Mary gives succor to sinners to enable 
them to rise from the unhappy state of 
sin. The sinner is in a most deplorable 
condition. He lives, indeed, an animal 
life, but is utterly destitute of spiritual life. 
He may be compared to a blind man, who, 
if he has not some one to lead him con- 
stantly by the hand. goes groping about, in 
danger every moment of falling into a pit 
or down a precipice. He may also be com- 
pared to the idols of the Gentiles, which, 
says the Psalmist (Ps. cxv.), have eyes 
and see not, ears and hear not, mouths and 
speak not, hands and feel not, feet and 
walk not. The sinner haseyesand sees not, 
because in the darkness which surrounds 
him he cannot distinguish truth from 
falsehood; he has ears and hears not, be- 
cause he either does not listen to the 
word of God, or, if he listens to it, having 
his mind crowded with earthly thoughts 
he occupies himself with these alone; he 
has a tongue and tastes not, because, hab- 
ituated to the corruption of vile pleasure, 
he finds no relish in virtue; he has hands, 
but he applies them not to works of sal- 
vation; he has feet, but instead of walking 
in the way of righteousness, he rushes 
headlong into the vortex of crimes. To 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 237 

be able to act, the blind man wants light, 
and the idol, life. The sinner, in like 
manner, lying helpless in the darkness of 
his iniquities, in order to rise from his un- 
happy condition and perform works of 
spiritual life, requires the light and aid 
of the grace of God. 

But Mary is the refuge of sinners. Be- 
fore the birth of Mary, says Richard of 
St. Lawrence, we had none to be our ad- 
vocate with the divine Word. But God 
the Father said: It is not good for man 
to be alone, let us give him a help, and 
let this help be the Blessed Virgin. She 
shall be a mediatrix for the human race 
in the presence of my Son, as my Son 
shall be a mediator in presence of my- 
self. Mary is the mother of grace, and 
the sinner who seeks after her finds grace 
and salvation. He that shall find me 
shall find life, and shall have salvation 
from the Lord (Prov % vii. 35). 

Whilst the Israelites were passing 
through the desert, they were protected 
from the burning heat, of the sun by a 
miraculous cloud which the Almighty 
caused to appear in the heavens. Thus 
Mary, say the Fathers, like an interven- 
ing cloud, shelters sinners from the an- 
ger of God and the fury of temptations. 
We may approach God with security 



238 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

whilst the Mother is in presence of the 
Son and the Son in presence of the 
Father. Mary reminds the Son of the 
motherly solicitude with which she 
watched over him, of her anxieties, her 
fears, on his account, of the toils, the 
privations, which he endured; the Son ex- 
hibits to the Father his wounds, his head 
crowned with thorns, the cross on which 
he poured forth his life. Can the Son 
reject the appeals of Mary ? Can the Fa- 
ther look with indifference on the Lamb 
that was slain in his honor? Let us 
therefore conclude with St. Anselm {de 
Excl. V. ii. i), if for the sake of sinners 
Mary was made the mother of God, how 
can any enormity of sin cause us to de- 
spair of pardon? 

ASPIRATION. 

Turn away my eyes, O Lord, that they 
may not behold vanity; quicken me in thy 
way {Ps. cxviii. 37). 

PRACTICE. 

Receive every trial with patience, in 
honor of Jesus and Mary. 

LITANY. 

Read "Chats About the Rosary!' 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



239 



TWENTY-THIRD DAY. 

PATRONAGE OF MARY. 

"The Lord hath blessed thee by his power, be- 
cause by thee he hath brought our enemies to 
naught." Judith xiii. 22, 

T^ULL of anger and indignation, Holo- 
* femes closely besieged Bethulia. Every 
thing portended the approaching fall of 
that unfortunate city. The citizens were 
in a state of extreme destitution, perishing 
of hunger and thirst. Heaven seemed 
deaf to their prayers. Then all gathering 
themselves together to Ozias, all together 
with one voice, said: There is no one to 
help us, while we are cast -down before 
the eyes of our enemies in thirst, and 
great destruction. And now assemble ye 
all that are in the city, that we may of our 
ownaccord yield ourselves all up to Holo- 
fernes; for it is better, that being captives 
we should live and bless the Lord, than 
that we should die and be a reproach to 
all He%h{Jud£th vii. 14). When Judith 
heard that Ozias had promised that he 
would deliver up the city after the fifth 
day, she sent for the ancients, and said to 



240 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

them: Who are you that tempt the Lord? 
You have set a time for the mercy of the 
Lord, and you have appointed him a day 
according to your pleasure (Judith vii. 
11). I have formed a plan for the liber- 
ation of our city, but I desire that you 
search not into what I am doing. Pray 
only that God may strengthen my design. 
She then went forth to combat the ene- 
mies of her country with no other arms 
than thoseof fasting, prayer, beauty, cour- 
age, and holy confidence in God. Judith 
cut off the head of Holofernes, and the 
Assyrian army was broken, put to flight, 
and dispersed. Bethulia was delivered, and 
Judith was celebrated as its saviour. 
Thou, exclaimed the high priest and the 
ancients, thou art the glory of Jerusalem; 
thou art the joy of Israel; thou art the 
honor of our people (Judith xv. 10). In- 
terpreting allegorically with the Fathers 
this historical fact, Holofernes is Satan; 
the Bethulians, the people of God; and 
Judith, Mary our protectress. We live 
indeed in a world of peril; and our adver- 
sary, the devil, as a roaring lion goeth a- 
bout seeking whom he may devour (/. Pet. 
v. 8). But take courage, children of God; 
as Judith delivered the Bethulians, so will 
Mary deliver us from the fangs of the in- 
fernal dragon and all his temptations, if 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 241 



we honor her with true, sincere, heartfelt 
devotion. Let us consider now the virtue 
of Mary's patronage, in the assaults and 
temptations of the enemy during life and 
at the moment of death. But let us begin 
by addressing Mary in the words said to 
Judith after her return from the Assyrian 
camp: The Lord hath blessed thee by his 
power, because by thee he hath brought 
our enemies to naught. 

I. 

Almighty God when he created man, in 
his goodness and mercy destined him 
for heaven; but scarcely had man been 
formedwhen the decree of death was pro- 
mulgated against him. Man is no sooner 
born than he begins to send forth cries of 
distress; he has already taken possession of 
the inheritance bequeathed us by our first 
father,an inheritance of woesand miseries 
which we can never alienate on earth. 
Man is born, but at his birth he bears in 
his bosom the germ of death. Pains, sor- 
rows, infirmities, wear his system every 
day, and lead him on insensibly to the 
grave. We are dying every day. But far 
more lamentable is the detriment to the 
soul and its danger. By the sin of Adam 
a frightful revolution was caused in the 



242 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

soul of man, with vast prejudice to its 
faculties, the memory was enfeebled, the 
intellect obscured, and the will rendered 
prone to evil. Reason lost its rectitude, 
and the germ of tumultuous passions was 
introduced into the heart. Experience 
teaches that with the development of the 
members and the increase of years the 
passions are developed and grow in power. 
The imagination and thought of man's 
heart are prone to evil from hisyouth(6^//. 
viii. 21). But who could describe the evils 
which surround man and conspire against 
his spiritual life on earth and happiness in 
heaven? The combats and wars which rage 
in his bosom? Who could number the en- 
emies who have sworn his destruction? 
The leaves of the forest are not equal in 
multitude to the ills with which man is 
afflicted; not so boisterous is the storm- 
tossed ocean as the heart of man stirred 
up by his passions. St. John assures us 
that all that is in the world istheconcupis- 
cence of the flesh, and the concupiscence 
of the eyes, and the pride of life (i John ii. 
16). On the other hand, our wrestling is 
not against flesh and blood, but against 
principalities and powers, against the rul- 
ers of the world of this darkness; against. 
the spirits of wickedness in the high 
places (Eph. vi. 12). If we consider our 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 24<J 

mind, we find it frequently clouded by the 
fumes of vanity, of honors, and of ambi- 
tion; if weconsiderour heart, wefind itboil- 
ing with furious passions, its affections 
vicious, inclined to pride, avarice, impurity, 
and anger; and if we consider the actions 
of man, we find that they are too often 
works of darkness and sin. All this chiefly 
arises from the cunning of Satan, who is 
incessantly striving by his temptations to 
lead us into evil. Unhappy that we are! 
Who shall deliver us from the body of this 
death, and from the temptationswhich as- 
sail us at every moment and seek to make 
us slaves to the law of sin? The grace of 
God by fesus Christ our Lord, and the 
most glorious Virgin, will be our deliver- 
ers (Rom. vii. 23-25). 

After God, Mary is our great advocate 
and our deliverer from the temptations 
which cause us so much annoyance and 
so greatly endanger our souls. The 
motherhood of Mary elevated her to a 
dignity so sublime, that the Angelic 
Doctor calls it almost infinite; because a 
creature cannot be more intimately unit- 
ed with God than by being his mother 
(1 p. q. 25. a. 6). In the opinion of some 
doctors, Mary obtained the title of Med- 
iatrix, not by her merits, nor by having 
prayed for the salvation of men, nor by 



244 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

having given birth to Jesus, but by- 
having freely and willinglyofferedherSon 
to the death of the cross to deliver us 
from the slavery of Satan and sin. Mary, 
says St. Epiphanius, discharged the office 
of priest and altar. In the temple, she 
offered her Son in sacrifice, holding him 
in her arms; on Golgotha she confirmed 
the offering already made, and on the 
altar of her heart she consumed that 
great holocaust of love with the excess 
of her patience and charity. There were 
two altars on Calvary; one in the body of 
Christ, the other in the bosom of Mary. 
Christ immolated his flesh, Mary her heart, 
for the benefit of sinners. With this title 
of Mediatrix, Mary received almost un- 
limited authority, in virtue of which she 
is queen of heaven and earth, and of hell 
also, defeated by her virtues. Al- 
though she is now enjoying the glory 
of heaven, she is not forgetful of us; she 
understands more distinctly now our af- 
flictions and our struggles of soul, and 
she is more solicitous and expeditious in 
lending us succor. 

This daily struggle of ours, and the 
protection which we have in Mary, was 
symbolically foretold by the Almighty in 
the beginning of the world. When Adam 
and Eve were created and ennobled with 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 245 



sanctifying grace, God commanded them 
not to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowl- 
edge of good and evil, and made death 
the penalty of disobedience. Satan, des- 
perate in his own fall and filled with 
vengeful feelings against God himself, 
could not suffer patiently that Adam and 
Eve should be more faithful to God in 
Eden than he had been in heaven. He 
called into action against them all his 
powers of cunning; and so successfully, 
that he induced them to transgress the 
command of God. The Lord in his mercy 
promised them a Redeemer, and said to 
the serpent: I will put enmities between 
thee and the woman, and thy seed and 
her seed ; she shall crush thy head {Gen. 
xiii. 15). Who is this great woman of 
promise if it is not Mary, who, by giving 
birth to Christ, and by her holy life, con- 
quered the serpent of the infernal abyss? 
The Fathers unanimously recognize, as 
promised in that woman, Mary, the 
Mother of J esus. She shall crush thy head. 
Some refer these words immediately to 
Christ, on the authority of the reading of 
some versions : He shall crush thy head. 
But this difference of reading is of slight 
importance ; it is certain that Christ has 
discomfited Lucifer, but he has done it in 
the body taken from Mary, so that Mary 



246 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

has really, by means of her Son, crushed 
the head of the serpent, and she still 
rests her foot upon his prostrate form. 

But Satan, though conquered, still 
spreads terror throughout the world, still 
meditates our ruin, and nurses ven- 
geance in his heart. He lies in wait for 
the innocent, and watches his opportun- 
ity to overwhelm them. Like a hungry 
lion he catches the slightest sound of ap- 
proaching prey ; he steals upon his unsus- 
pecting victim, and with a sudden spring 
bears him to the ground. He passes 
over the earth as a cloud pregnant with 
the storm passes along the heavens. It 
moves slowly at first and excites little ap- 
prehension; it gradually assumes a dan- 
gerous aspect; then, all at once, it darts 
forth its lightnings and unchains all its 
thunderbolts. But happy are we, if we 
honor Mary as a mother. Mothers are 
unwilling to lose sight of their children; 
Mary, then, will keep her eyes upon her 
servants, and not suffer them to be de- 
ceived by the cunning or overthrown by 
the power of Lucifer. 

When the Israelites were about to un- 
dertake a war or engage in battle with 
some enemy, they immediately turned 
their eyes to the ark. From it they de- 
rived strength for their arms and cour- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 2-47 



age for their souls; and by means of it 
they came off victorious. When the ark 
was lifted up, Moses said: Arise, O Lord, 
and let thy enemies be scattered, and let 
them that hate thee flee from before thy 
face {Numb. iv. 35). In this manner 
Moses overcame the nations that op- 
posed his passage. The city of Jericho 
was not taken till the ark was borne 
seven times around the walls; and whilst 
it was borne round for the seventh time, 
the walls fell of themselves, and the Is- 
raelites entered and took possession of 
the city (Jos. vi.). The ark was a figure 
of Mary. The ark containing the manna, 
says Cornelius a Lapide, is the Blessed 
Virgin, who supplies man with strength 
to oppose the devil. In the patronage of 
Mary, therefore, we find power against 
the temptations which assail us. 

II. 

Death is terrible to all; even the greatest 
saints dreaded it. Various reasons 
produce fear of death, but let us here 
dwell upon two alone: the uncertainty 
of our future lot, and the temptations 
with which the devil usually assaults us 
in our last moments. Then, in the silence 
of the passions, all other thoughts are re- 
jected; those thoughts alone occupy us 



248 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

which regard the life to come. The con- 
sciousness that time is drawing to a close 
causes the dying man to reflect seriously 
upon his own soul, upon God, and eter- 
nity, but the devil then comes down to 
us, having great wrath, knowing that he 
hath but a short time {Aftoc. xii. 12). He 
is tortured with envy at the thought that 
we, aided by divine grace, shall take pos- 
session of seats once intended for him 
and his followers and he employs all his 
knowledge and puts in practice all bis arts 
in order to gain us as companions in 
the dwelling place of eternal woe. The 
dying Christian groans in agony of spirit, 
and after God, finds no resource except 
the protection of Mary. 

St. Bonaventure teaches us that Mary 
sends to her dying servants St. Michael 
and other celestial spirits, to defend them 
against the temptations of the enemy, and 
to meet the souls of those who were par- 
ticularly devout to her and conduct them 
in triumph to heaven. Lucifer, on the 
contrary, stirs up the lowest regions of 
ruin, and despatches his most cruel min- 
isters to watch the dying man, and tear, if 
possible, his soul from the bosom of God. 
But the merciful God, says St. Germanus, 
has given such power to Mary that the 
malignant spirits fly in dismay at her 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 249 

very beck, and would rather undergo any 
increase of torture than see themselves 
swayed by the authority of Mary. Who 
then will be so bold as to accuse before 
the Supreme Judge him whom Mary pat- 
ronizes? Mary herself visits her devout 
servants at the last hour, and bears to 
them strength and encouragement and 
consolation. What a happiness to have 
Mary for a protectress in death! 

ASPIRATION. 

Show thyself a Mother, most amiable 
Virgin. 

PRACTICE. 

Be careful to avoid every occasion of sin. 

LITANY. 

Read Alb an Butler on the feasts of the 
Blessed Virgin. 



250 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 

TWENTY-FOURTH DAY. 

PROTECTION OF MARY. 

''He conducted them with a cloud by day, and 
all the night with a light of fire." Ps. lxxii. 14. 

>TpHE Hebrews had withdrawn them- 



1 selves from the yoke of Egyptian serv- 
itude; they had passed the Red Sea, 
treading its sands with unmoistened feet; 
they had seen, at the stretching forth of 
the hand of Moses, the waters of the deep 
reunite themselves, and shut up in the 
middle of the waves Pharao and his whole 
army — his foot soldiers, his chariots and 
his horsemen; and Moses and the chil- 
dren of Israel had sung that admirable 
canticle of exultation, in which are man- 
ifested the mercies of God with his peo- 
ple. Suddenly the Israelites are seized 
with terror, feeling themselves impris- 
oned in that vast wilderness. Behind 
them was the sea like an interminable 
wall; before them, the desert without 
boundary. And although they were 
miraculously provided with food by the 
Almighty, during the day they were with- 
out shelter from the rays of the burning 
sun, and at night were in darkness with- 
out guidance for their footsteps. But 




THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 251 

the Lord did not neglect them in their 
necessities. He caused a wonderful cloud 
to appear in the sky, which afforded them 
shade by day, and at night, glowing like 
fire, shed light round on every side. It 
also assumed the form of a pillar, and 
served to direct them in their wanderings. 
The pillar of the cloud by day, and the 
pillar of the fire by night, never failed as 
long as Israel remained in the wilderness. 
The Fathers teach that in the pillar of 
cloud was prefigured the Holy Virgin, 
and as it served for guidance and pro- 
tection to the children of Israel, so 
Mary guides her servants safely through 
the darksome paths of life, and defends 
them against the unceasing attacks of their 
enemies. Mary, says St. Bonaventure, 
delivers us from the fury of the indigna- 
tion of God, and the power of the temp- 
tation of Satan. Let us now consider 
that Mary displays the virtue of her 
protection, in preserving her devout 
servants from the pains of hell, and in 
liberating them from the flames of Pur- 
gatory. 

I. 

How terrible is the thought of Hell! 
The torments of that place of horror are 
innumerable; but to two, principally, they 



252 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

are reduced by theologians.to the penalty 
of loss and the penalty of sense — poena 
damni and poena sensus. The penalty of 
loss consists in the privation of the vision 
of God, in which is found eternal beati- 
tude; the penalty of sense consists in the 
sensible sufferings with which the lost 
ones are tortured. By the penalty of loss 
the reprobate is excluded from his last 
end, can never see the face of God,can nev- 
er raise his eyes to heaven, and is deprived 
of every good. He is forever the enemy 
of God, an object of his hatred and ven- 
geance; and God, so to speak, casts him 
off as if he were no longer his creature. 
Hence arises an extreme, irreconcilable, 
and mutual hatred between God and the 
sinner. As to the penalty of the sense, no 
eloquence could portray its frightfulness. 
All that can be expressed is far below the 
truth. All the afflictions ever endured 
by the unfortunate, all the cruelties ex- 
ercised on the martyrs, afford only 
a feeble idea of the torments of the 
damned. Our material fire, the very 
touch of which causes inexpressible pain, 
is but a shadow of that devouring fire, 
which every moment produces death-ag- 
onies that never end in death. 

Some conception of the dreadfulness of 
those tortures may be drawn from the re- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 253 



flection that they are eternal, and are in- 
flicted by an infinite, an Almighty God, 
infinitely outraged by the sinner. Men 
and women, old and young, all who die 
impenitent, are confusedly heaped to- 
gether in that abode of horror. It was 
created in the beginning for Lucifer and 
his rebel associates, but it opened its 
gates to man after the sin of Adam. 
There are to be seen piled upon one an- 
other, pagans, idolaters, jews, mahome- 
tans, heretics and schismatics, and a- 
mongst them many with the sign of salva- 
tion upon their brows, who forfeited the 
claims which it gave them; Catholics, but 
forsworn Catholics, still bearing the 
mark of faith which they dishon- 
ored, but only for their never ending 
shame. And many are called but few 
are chosen. Great God! who can escape 
thy anger? How avoid thy fury? How shall 
we be able to resist rebellious concupis- 
cence, evil examples, perverse inclina- 
tions, and the rulers of the world of this 
darkness? 

We are indeed navigating a tempestuous 
sea filled with hidden rocks; but our star 
shines forth and points out the harbor of 
salvation. If our passions entice us out 
of the way, and leave us wandering like 
bewildered travelers, Mary causes a ray 



254 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



of light from on high to flash across our 
minds, which reconducts our footsteps to 
the right path; and thus she delivers us 
from hell, into which we were rushing by 
our sins. Mary delivers no one who is act- 
ually lost, for in hell there is no redemp- 
tion. But whoever commits mortal sin, 
is from that moment a victim of perdition. 
If Mary, by her intercession, enlightens 
his mind, and touches his heart, and re- 
calls him to the life of grace, she may be 
said to deliver him from eternal ruin, be- 
cause she rescues him from that condition 
whichwould inevitably precipitate him in- 
to everlasting flames. Nor is Mary the de- 
liverer of those who, relying on their im- 
aginary devotion to her, sin with less 
hesitation. Their presumption deserves 
punishment, not protection. But the 
sinner who wishes sincerely to change 
his life, and recommends himself earnest- 
ly to the mother of God, shall surely dis- 
cover that Mary is also the sinner's 
mother, and she will rescue him from de- 
struction. There is nothing so good 
that men may not misuse it; they abuse 
even the goodness of God. But human 
malice cannot affect the nature of holi- 
ness and truth. We need not, therefore, 
hesitate to proclaim that it is morally im- 
possible for that sinner to be lost who, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 255 

truly penitent for his sins, practises de- 
votion to the Virgin Mary. 

The titles with which the Church hon- 
ors Mary, show the exceeding esteem in 
which it holds her influence. It extols 
her as the mother of grace and of mercy; 
as defence against our enemy — our ad- 
vocate and mediatrix. The Holy Fathers 
are unanimous in celebrating the power 
of Mary's protection. St. Ignatius, Mar- 
tyr, proclaims: It is impossible for the 
sinner to be saved, unless through the 
help and favor of the Holy Virgin. Those 
whom the justice of God does not save, 
Mary saves, in her boundless mercy, by 
the unlimited virtue of her intercession. 
St. Antoninus writes {p. 4, tit. 50): As it 
is impossible for those to obtainsalvation 
from whom Mary withdraws her eyes of 
mercy, so it becomes, in a certain manner, 
necessary that those on whom she looks 
with kindness, interceding in their behalf, 
reach the haven of happiness and be 
glorified forever in paradise. St. Anselm 
teaches (de Excel, v. c. ii.), that,as it is im- 
possible for one who is not favored by 
her, to attain eternal life, so it is impos- 
sible that he be lost who recurs to her 
with confidence, and is regarded by her 
with affection. St. Bernard, asking the 
reason why the Church invokes Mary as 



256 ™E MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



the queen and mother of mercy, replies: 
Because she is believed to open the treas- 
ures of divine mercy to whom she pleases 
and as she pleases, so that no sinner, how- 
ever enormous his crimes, perishes, in 
whose behalf the queen of saints inter- 
poses with God. 

The Church applies to Mary the words 
of the book of Proverbs, All that hate me 
love death (xxiv. 36). And those of Eccle- 
siasticus, He that hearkeneth to me shall 
not be confounded (xxiv. 30). Mary is 
the valiant woman of scripture, who, like 
the merchant's ship, bringeth her bread 
from afar (Prov. xxxi. 14). In the stormy 
ocean of this world all are shipwrecked 
who do not seek refuge on board this 
vessel. Mary is the tower of strength, 
that defends all who take shelter in it a- 
gainst the most violent assaults of their en- 
emies. Mary is the ark of safety, which 
buoys us up amidst raging billows, and 
prevents us from being ingulfed in the 
abyss. Mary is the effulgent sun which ir- 
radiates our intellect, so that we open our 
eyes to divine grace and abandon the life 
of sin. Let us therefore conclude,with the 
words of St. John of Damascus, O great 
mother of God, if 1 repose my confidence 
in thee, I shall be saved. If I place myself 
under thy protection, I have nothing to 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 257 

fear; for devotion to thee is a means of 
salvation which God grants to those a- 
lone whom he wishes to bless forever 
(Serm. de B. V.). 

II. 

After having considered that the pro- 
tection of Mary preserves sinners from 
hell, let us consider her great solicitude 
for the deliverance of the souls in purga- 
tory. Although those souls are inexpres- 
sibly dear to Almighty God, still, as noth- 
ing soiled can enter the kingdom of 
heaven, and as they passed from this life 
with some sin not atoned for, Divine Jus- 
tice demands that they should make ex- 
piation in the painful prison of purgatory. 
In the opinion of the Fathers, the suffer- 
ings of the souls in purgatory -are exces- 
sively intense. St. Augustine says that 
the fire of purgatory is more severely 
tormenting than all the punishments and 
afflictions that can be seen, felt, or con- 
ceived in this world. It is the sentiment 
of St. Thomas, with theologians com- 
monly, that the fire of purgatory has the 
same power as the fire of hell. In hell 
the soul is tortured by eternal flames; in 
purgatory these same flames torture for 
the limited time appointed by Divine Jus- 



258 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

tice.The fire of purgatory, by supernatural 
power, operates immediately upon the 
soul, and necessarily causes far greater 
suffering in the soul than ordinary fire 
could cause by its action on the body. 

Mary assuages the sufferings of the 
souls in purgatory. She said to St. Brid- 
get: I am the loving mother of all the 
souls detained in purgatory; because the 
punishment which they endure for their 
sins is constantly mitigated, in some 
measure, through my prayers. The 
Blessed Virgin, says St. Bernardine of Si- 
ena, extends her dominion over the king- 
dom of purgatory, and by the authority 
which she derives from her dignity, her 
merits, and her prayers, delivers her de- 
vout servants from their prison of tor- 
ment (Ac. ii. c.i, de Norn. M. ). The name 
of Mary to the souls in purgatory is a 
name of encouragement and consolation, 
and her prayers are like the shower of a 
summer cloud, which refreshes the heat- 
ed atmosphere and revives the languid 
and drooping flowers of the garden. 
And not only are the sufferings of purga- 
tory mitigated by the merits and prayers 
of Mary, but their duration is abbreviated 
(Novarinus.). Mary's protection, therefore, 
softens the pains of purgatory, and ob- 
tains deliverance from its flames, and, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LA DY. 259 

moreover, prevents sinners from falling 
into perdition by leading them to repent- 
ance and reformation of life. 

ASPIRATION. 

From sudden and unprovided death 
deliver us, O Holy Virgin. 

PRACTICE. 

Ask the protection and blessing of 
Mary before every important action. 

LITANY. 

Read The B. V. M. in the Gospels. 



TWENTY-FIFTH DAY. 

MARY OUR HOPE. 

'Go in, thou and all thy house, into the ark." 
Gen. ii. i. 

£Tt the time of Noe, men and their sins 
flhad been greatly multiplied. The dif- 
ferent parts of the world were crowded 



260 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



with lovers of ease and gratifications. 
Their thoughts and language, we may well 
suppose, were similar to those of the im- 
pious in the book of Wisd om. The time 
of our life is short and tedious;we are born 
of nothing, and after this we shall be as if 
we had not been. After this life our body 
shall be ashes, and our spirit shall be 
poured abroad as soft air, and our life 
shall pass away as the trace of a cloud, 
and shall be dispersed as a mist which is 
driven away by the beams of the sun and 
overpowered with the heat thereof. Our 
time is as the passing of a shadow, and 
there is no going back of our end. Come, 
therefore, and let us enjoy the good 
things that are present. Let us crown 
ourselves with roses before they be with- 
ered; let no meadow escape our riot; let 
us everywhere leave tokens of joy for this 
our portion and this our lot ( Wisd. ii.). Al- 
mighty God, seeing that the wickedness 
of men was great on earth, and hearing 
the blasphemies of their impiety, it re- 
pented him that he had made man; and be- 
ingtouched inwardly with sorrow of heart, 
he said: I will destroy man whom I have 
created from the face of the earth, — 
from man even to beasts, from the creep- 
ing thing even to the fowls of the air— 
for it repenteth me that I have made 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



261 



them. And he said to Noe: The end of 
all flesh is come before me, the earth is 
filled with iniquity through them and 
I will destroy them with the earth. Make 
thee an ark of timber planks to contain 
all the living creatures that I shall spare 
from destruction. Noe built the ark and 
entered into it with his family and living 
creatures of every kind, according to the 
number designated by the Almighty. The 
waters of the flood then overflowed the 
earth and all flesh was destroyed that 
moved upon it (Gen. vi.). Thus did the 
God of justice punish sinners. What lot 
have we to expect? Is there no protec- 
tion for us — no ark of safety? The ark of 
Noe, says St. Bernard, was the symbol 
of the ark of grace — of Mary the mother 
of God. The ark of Noe was a means of 
preservation from the waters of the del- 
uge; Mary is the means of preservation 
from shipwreck through sin. Noe built 
the ark in order to escape the deluge; 
Christ prepared Mary for himself, that 
he might redeem the human race. 
Through the ark, eight persons alone 
were saved; through Mary, all men are 
invited to eternal life (Serm. de S. M.): St. 
Bernard was untiring in exhorting sin- 
ners to have recourse, with confidence, to 
Mary, in order to obtain sorrow and for- 



262 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

giveness for their sins. To excite still 
greater devotion in our hearts to this 
Holy Mother, let us consider that she 
is the hope of all, and of sinners in par- 
ticular. 

L 

We are all children of God, but be- 
ing endowed with free will, we choose, 
some of us to be dutiful, and others, un- 
dutiful children. The ways of the virtu- 
ous are different, as well as the ways of 
the wicked. Among the good, some 
cultivate particularly one virtue, some 
another; of the wicked, some devote 
themselves to riches, others to honors, 
others to pleasures. Experience teaches 
us that the wicked outnumber the virtu- 
ous. Many are called but few are chosen. 
The great reason of this is to be 
found in the frequency and force of temp- 
tation! Our enemy aims at nothing less 
than the total ruin of our souls, and to 
compass this, he exerts all his malice, 
spite, power, and vigilance. How diffi- 
cult it is to resist his suggestions— to dis- 
cover his deceptions! No man on earth 
is valiant and wise enough to contend 
with him successfully. He possesses 
wisdom, courage, prudence, intelligence, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 263 



far superior to ours, and all these are 
made subservient to insatiable malice 
and zeal for the eternal destruction of 
man. He never suffers infirmity, be- 
cause he is immortal; he is never wearied, 
because he is indefatigable; he is 
never checked by remorse, because he 
is incorrigible; he cannot be moved by 
entreaties, because he is dead to every 
feeling of pity and mercy. He is at one 
time a serpent, at another a lion, using 
violence and fraud, open war, and clan- 
destine surprise. His auxiliaries are the 
world and the flesh — the world with its 
pomp and vanities, the flesh with its flat- 
tering allurements. He draws opportuni- 
ty from everything. He makes use of our- 
selves to destroy us. He corrupts the feel- 
ings of the heart, disturbs the humors of 
the body, throws into confusion the ideas 
of the mind, and combats us, not only by 
wickedness, but also by apparent virtue. 
If we are timid, he overwhelms us insult- 
ingly; if we imagine ourselves strong for 
the fight, he overcomes us without bat- 
tle; if we sometimes succeed in defeating 
him, he returns to the contest more im- 
petuously than before. This is a brief 
sketch of a man's sad life of temptations 
on earth. 

Mary is our hope in this land of sor- 



264 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



row and trial. Mary, with all the fond 
tenderness of a mother, assists her de- 
vout servants to persevere in virtue -and 
live a life of grace and holiness. She 
is the great woman promised to mankind, 
who was to repair the evil caused by our 
first mother, Eve, and crush the head of 
the deceiving serpent. I will put en- 
mities, saith God to the serpent, between 
thee and the woman, and thy seed and 
her seed, she shall crush thy head {Gen. 
iii. 15). The serpent is the devil, the 
woman is Mary; her seed is Christ, the 
Divine Word made man in the bosom of 
Mary. The ruin of the human race and 
the empire of Satan had beginning from 
a woman. From the Holy Virgin took 
rise the reparation of man and the de- 
struction of sin. The enemy, like a serpent 
concealed in the grass, lies in wait for 
the children of God; but all bis schemes 
are frustrated through the patronage 
of Mary. According to St. Bernard, the 
Blessed Virgin is the famous warrior- 
woman who first made war against our 
enemy, who defeated and prostrated him, 
and still, holding him in slavery beneath 
her feet, restrains him from destroying 
the children of God. 

Whilst the Israelites, exiled from their 
own country, were in servitude in the em- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 255 



pire of Persia, the fair Esther, amongst 
many maidens selected for their beauty, 
found most favor with Assuerus. The 
king, in a great assembly of all the princes 
of the empire, placed the royal diadem 
upon her head, and made her queen in- 
stead of Vasthi. Sometime after, the 
king advanced A man, and set his 
throne above all the princes that were 
with him. And all the king's servants 
that were at the doors of the palace, 
bent their knees and worshipped 
Aman, for so the emperor had com- 
manded them; only Mardochai did 
not bend his knee, or worship him (Estk. 
iii, 1, 2). Aman was filled with indigna- 
tion at this want of respect on the part 
of Mardochai; and calling together his 
friends, and Zares his wife, declared to 
them the greatness of his riches and with 
how great glory the king had advanced 
him above all his princes and servants. 
And whereas, he added, I have all these 
things, 1 think 1 have nothing so long as 
I see Mardochai. the Jew, sitting before 
the king's gate (Ibid.w 10-12). He then 
prevailed upon the king to publish an 
edict, commanding that all the Hebrews 
in the empire should be killed and de- 
stroyed on the same day. When Mardochai 
had heard these things he rent his gar- 



266 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

ments and put on sackcloth, strewing 
ashes on his head. And in all provinces, 
towns, and places, to which the king's 
cruel edict was come, there was great 
mourning among the Jews, with fasting, 
wailing, and weeping. The proud Aman 
was exultant; but punishment soon fol- 
lowed his crime. Mardochai and the Jews 
reposed all their hopes in Esther; and 
she, by her prayers, induced the king to 
recall the bloody edict. Aman was hung 
upon the gibbet which he had erected for 
Mardochai; and to the Jews a new light 
seemed to arise, joy, honor, and exulta- 
tion. All the sacred expositors apply 
this fact to Mary. St. Bonaventure writes: 
The favor of Mary delivers from eternal 
death all those whom she wishes to de- 
liver. This was prefigured in queen Es- 
ther. The king loved her above all the 
other women, and placed the diadem 
upon her head. By power with the king, 
Esther obtained the crown of royalty 
and saved her people from extermina- 
tion. Mary found such favor with the 
eternal King of ages, that she became 
queen of heaven and earth, and brought 
succor to the human race delivered over 
to death {Spec. B. V. c. 5). St. Anselm 
exclaims, What thanks shall I return to 
the Mother of God, my Lord, through 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 267 

whose fruitfulness I have been ransomed 
from slavery and snatched from eternal 
death ; by whose offspring I have been 
restored to life, and recalled from an ex- 
ile of misery to the country of celestial 
happiness ? The most Holy Virgin, the 
most perfect among mere creatures, ren- 
dered herself so dear to the Lord by her 
fairness and her virtues, that he selected 
her for his mother and associated her 
with himself in the work of redemption. 
Who will deny to Mary the power to save 
sinners from the anger of God ? What 
Christian will hesitate to place his every 
hope in Mary ? 

II. 

All have much to hope from the pat- 
ronage of Mary, but sinners have the 
most powerful motives for hope. When 
a father is in anger against an ungrateful 
son, what does the son do to conciliate a- 
newthe love of his father? He hastens to 
hismother,acknowledgeshisdisobedience, 
his misconduct, expresses his regret, and 
his determination to offend no more, de- 
clares to her that he dares not approach 
his father, and entreats her to interpose 
her influence. The fond mother rejoices 
to see her wayward son repentant, ap- 



268 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

peals earnestly to the father, and desists 
not from her kind efforts until she effects 
a reconciliation between father and son. 
By sinning we offer insult to the infinite 
majesty of a God who is holiness by es- 
sence: so that he no longer regards us as 
his people, no longer as his children. He 
turns his face away from us in anger. 
Left to ourselves, we can do nothing 
meritorious of eternal life. Were death 
to come upon us in this state, we 
should be lost forever. But Mary, see- 
ing our disposition to penitence, obtains 
pardon for us by her urgent entreaties, 
and restores us to grace and to the rights 
of the children of heaven. 

Is Mary, exclaims St. Bonaventure. the 
mother of Christ alone? Xo, assuredly; 
she is likewise the universal mother of all 
the faithful. If Christ, says St. Ambrose, 
is the brother of believers, why is not 
Mary, who gave him birth. the mother of 
believers? Let us rejoice, therefore, 
and cry out with rapture, Blessed is the 
brother through whom Mary is our 
mother, andblessed isthe mother through 
whom Christ is our brother. The mother 
of God is then our mother. The mother 
of him in whom we trust, and whom alone 
we have to fear, is also our own mother. 
Thou, O Mary, subjoins St. Bernard. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 269 

art mother of the king and the exile; 
mother of the culprit and the judge; 
mother of God and of man. Being mother 
of the one and the other, thou canst not 
suffer them to remain in discord. If sin 
condemns the sinner, says St. Bonaven- 
ture, the protection of Mary recalls him 
to life and preserves him living. O, the 
wonderful mercy of the Lord our God, 
who, to enable us to avoid the rigor of 
his justice, not only gave us a mediator in 
Christ, but a zealous advocate in Mary! 

The Lord commanded Moses to place 
upon the ark the propitiatory, covered 
with plates of the purest gold. Two 
cherubim stood at the sides covering the 
propitiatory with their wings and forming 
a kind of throne, on which the Lord was 
believed to sit and receive the prayers and 
vows of his people, and render thence his 
answers and his oracles, and make known 
his will (Ex. xxv. 17-22). Mary, writes a de- 
vout and learned servant of hers, is the 
universal propitiatory. Thence God 
speaks to the heart of men, and gives re- 
sponses of kindness and pardon; thence 
he distributes his treasures, and thence 
all kirrds of blessings flow to man. St. 
Germanus thus invokes Mary: Thou art 
my encouragement, thou my only guide in 
my earthly pilgrimage, thou the strength 



270 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

of my weakness, thou the wealth of my 
poverty, the medicine of my infirmities, 
the consolation of my sorrowsuthou art 
my liberator from captivity, thou art the 
hope of my salvation. Hear my prayers; 
have compassion on my sighs. Thou art 
my queen, my refuge, my life, my help, 
my hope, my strength. Mary is, therefore, 
the hope of all Christians, but especially 
of sinners. By having recourse to her with 
confidence, they readily obtain for- 
giveness from Almighty God. 

ASPIRATION. 

On the day of judgment deliver us, 
Holy Virgin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Repeat, with great devotion, the An- 
gelic Salutation. 

LITANY. 

Read Creator and Creature, by Father 
Faber. 



TH.E MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



271 



TWENTY-SIXTH DAY. 

MARY OUR GUIDE TO HEAVEN. 

"As the Morning Star in the midst of a 
cloud." Eccl. i. 6. 

TITHEN a man is born into the world, his 
" mother smiles upon him and forgets 
her sorrows. But the man arrives a 
stranger, and enters upon a life full of 
bitterness, toil, and misery. As if antici- 
pating the ills which await him, before 
he opens his eyes to the light of day, he 
bathes them with tears; before a smile en- 
livens his lips, he distorts them with lam- 
entations; before he speaks, he groans 
and complains. All this only foreshadows 
the afflictions which man is destined to 
encounter in life. Holy Job calls the 
world a land of misery and darkness; and 
the life of man a warfare on earth. 
Whether we consider the internal tu- 
mults by which man is harassed, or the 
dangers which on all sides surround him 
without, we shall find that his life 
has a perfect image in a tempestuous 
ocean which threatens a shipwreck 
at every moment. The monsters of the 



272 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



deep, its frightful whirlpools, its insid- 
ious quicksands, the continual agitation 
of its billows, are appropriate images 
of the passions of the human heart 
— their turbulence and inconstancy. 
The pirates which infest the seas, 
the tempests which darken the heav- 
ens, are vivid images of the dangers 
which encompass man and threaten him 
with eternal destruction. If the unfort- 
unate mariner is overtaken by the tem- 
pest during the obscurity of night, and by 
the fury of winds driven out of his course, 
what recourse is left to him? None, un- 
less his friendly star looks out through 
the parting clouds, and points out the 
way to a port of safety. Have we a friendly 
star in the stormy ocean of life? Our 
star is Mary, says St. Ambrose [de B. V.) s 
and all Christians should turn their eyes 
to her, and direct the course of their life 
according to' her example. If we do this 
we shall not be driven about by the 
breath of vain glory; we shall not be 
dashed to pieces against the resistance of 
enemies; we shall not be swallowed up by 
the whirlpool of pleasures, but shall ar- 
rive safely at the harbor of eternal peace. 
Influenced by these considerations, the 
Church salutes Mary as Star of the Sea — 
Hail. Star of the Sea! and Mary is a faithful 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 273 

star and guides to heaven both the just 
man and the sinner. 

I. 

St. Thomas teaches (Op. 8) that the 
especial reason why the Blessed Virgin 
was named Mary, is, that she was enlight- 
ened. And, indeed, Mary was so enlight- 
ened by the grace of God, that she was able 
to communicate light to the whole world. 
As the sun and moon, among the celestial 
bodies, shed the greatest abundance of 
light over the face of the earth, Mary is 
likened to the sun and moon. Mary was 
enlightened by God, adds St. Bonaven- 
ture (in Spec. C. 13), and she enlightens 
the universe with the numerous favors of 
her mercy and charity. Fair is the moon, 
says St. Peter Damian, and although it 
obscures the smaller stars, it does not 
prevent them from sending down to us 
some rays of light ; but when the sun 
rises majestically in the east, it diffuses 
splendor throughout the world ; and 
whilst it brings full day to us, it com- 
pletely overpowers the brightness of all 
the stars. In like manner the Blessed 
Virgin shines resplendent in grace 
above angels and men (Serm.de Annunt). 
St. Thomas teaches (Op. 8) that the 



274 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 



Lord infused a threefold fulness of 
grace into the Blessed Virgin; the first 
was a fulness of sufficiency, the second 
of abundance, and the third of excellency. 
The first he bestowed upon her the very 
moment of her sanctification; the second 
when the incarnation was accomplished; 
and the third accompanied every action 
of her life, and rendered her incompar- 
able in the exercise of every virtue. 

The grace of Mary was immeasurably 
greater and more sublime than the grace 
of angels and saints; because she was not 
only exalted to be queen of angels and 
men, but was also destined to be the im- 
maculate mother of the Most High. Be- 
sides sanctifying grace, we receive in 
Baptism and the other sacraments 
other graces, by which we are enabled 
to practise good works and merit the 
eternal possession of God; but the 
grace conferred upon the Blessed Vir- 
gin, in her sanctification, was grace pre- 
paring her for the most sublime dignity 
of Mother of God. The difference be- 
tween the grace of Mary and that of 
the other saints is immense; Mary, from 
her conception, was appointed Mother 
of God; the other saints were destined to 
enjoy the vision of God in heaven. If all 
the graces bestowed upon Mary had for 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



275 



their principal object her dignity of 
Mother of him who is the light of the 
world, we may justly conclude that Mary 
was enlightened in order that she also 
might furnish light to us. 

The miraculous pillar, which the Lord 
caused to appear to the Israelites in the 
wilderness, guided them faithfully during 
all of their wanderings, until they reached 
the land of promise. As soon as the sun 
appeared above the horizon it assumed a 
dusky hue, and became a pillar of a 
cloud; but when the sun disappeared it 
became a pillar of fire, and glowing like 
a new sun, illuminated the encampments 
of the Israelites. Sacred expositors teach 
that the pillar of light was, amongst 
other things, a symbol of the Blessed 
Virgin. She was never in darkness, says 
St. Jerome {in Ps. lxxvii.), but always in 
light. O Holy Virgin, exclaims St. E- 
piphanius {Or at. de Land. F.),thou art a 
shining star who didst draw down light 
from heaven — Christ our Lord — to en light- 
en the minds of mortals. Celestial cloud, 
irradiated by the Holy Ghost, thou didst 
bring into the world the Savior of the 
human race; beneficent cloud, thou didst 
cause the heavenly dew of the Holy 
Spirit to fall upon the earth and produce 
the fruits of faith. O vivifying cloud, 



276 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

cries out St. Andrew of Crete {prat, 
de Dezp.), who guided with thy light 
not the carnal people of Israel, but 
Christian nations to the knowl- 
edge of the ineffable light of God! The 
miraculous cloud, therefore, which ap- 
peared to the Israelites in the wilderness, 
signified not only Christ, who came to 
enlighten the whole world with the light 
of his grace, but the Blessed Virgin also, 
who, with Christ, and after Christ enlight- 
ens the universe. That pillar of light 
enabled the Israelites to avoid the perils 
of the night; the light with which Mary 
favors her servants enables them to 
avoid the dangers of sin and perdition. 
That cloud conducted the children of 
Israel safely to the land of Chanaan; Mary 
guides us through this wicked and treach- 
erous world and finally leads us to 
eternal happiness. 

God in his wisdom and goodness wished 
us to possess in his Son an advocate 
with himself, and in Mary an advocate 
with his Son. Our ruin commenced with 
a woman, and with a woman likewise 
the Lord wished our reparation to begin. 
By one woman, says St. Augustine (Serm. 
13 de Nat), death entered into the 
world, and by one woman, also, the Holy 
Virgin, life and salvation were restored 



THE MONTH O* OUR LADY. 277 

to man. By means of Eve the light of 
original grace was extinguished, and by 
means of Mary it was rekindled in the 
world. Her Son Jesus is the triumphant 
light of grace which alone can conduct 
to heaven. 

II. 

Christ our Savior, wishing to im- 
press us with the greatness of his solici- 
tude for our welfare, assumes the char- 
acter of a shepherd. I am the Good Shep- 
herd {John x. 14), the shepherd of your 
souls, and I feed them in the pastures of 
divine grace, that you may possess eter- 
nal life. As such he is represented in the 
Spouse of the Canticles. But who is 
mystically shadowed forth in his spouse? 
All interpreters with one -voice reply 
that, under the name of spouse, is signi- 
fied the Church, the just soul, and the 
Virgin Mary. Mary, therefore, has the 
character of a divine shepherdess. The 
good shepherd feeds his flock, conducts it 
on the way, and protects it. Mary, then, 
as our shepherdess by divine appoint- 
ment, must perform for us the same kind 
offices. She feeds us with the exam- 
ple of her virtues. Let the virginity and 
life of Mary, writes St. Ambrose, be ever 



278 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

present to your minds ; in her as in a 
mirror, the image of chastity and of every 
virtue is reflected. Study the examples of 
her life, there you will discover what is to 
be amended, what is to be shunned, and 
what is to be practised (Lib.2 de B. M.). 
Imitate. exhorts St. Ildephonsus,the Bless- 
ed Virgin and the saints, whom you glor- 
ify; our commendation is not so advant- 
ageous to them as their imitation is to us. 
The divine spouse is much better pleased 
with a devout imitator than with an idle 
eulogizer. True, heartfelt praise, how- 
ever, consists in imitating the deeds of the 
person praised (Serm. de Assumfit.). 
Mary, therefore, proposes to sinners the 
imitation of her virtues; firm faith, im- 
movable hope, untiring charity, profound 
humility. 

The sinner, being blinded in the under- 
standing, has need of a guide to conduct 
him on the way. But where shall we 
find a better guide than Mary? As the 
Lord made his star appear to the wise 
men of the east to lead them to the cra- 
dle of the Savior of the world, so he has 
given to sinners a mystic star, Mary, to be 
their guide to the kingdom of heaven. 
When the flock wanders off into rough 
and dangerous places, what does the good 
shepherd? He hastens after them, turns 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. o;g 

them back, and directs them to grassy 
plains and smooth, sloping hills. When 
Mary sees a Christian dangerously urged 
to sin by violent temptation or vicious 
inclinations, she speeds to his side and 
entices him back to the path of virtue. 
Mary, according to St. Bernard {Serin. 4 
deNat. F.),dispenses the life of divine wis- 
dom and the dew of celestial grace. If a 
wild beast assails the flock, the shepherd 
immediately stands forth in its defense. 
But who shall defend us in the midst of so 
many enemies? We shall fall a prey to 
their fury, unless we place ourselves un- 
der the protection of the divine shepherd- 
ess, Mary. Our perfidious enemy seeks to 
destroy us by deceptions and tempta- 
tions; but we have nothing to fear if 
Mary combats in our behalf. Her power 
is extremely great, and according to 
the saints. at the sole mention of her name 
every creature reverently bends the knee, 
and the infernal spirits are scattered like 
a cloud in presence of the sun. 

ASPIRATION. 

Hail, Star of the Sea, Mother of God, 
and Gate of Heaven. 



280 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

PRACTICE. 



Entreat the Blessed Virgin to obtain 
for you grace to grow in the love of God 
every day. 

LITANY. 

Read Father Burke s Sermon on "Mary, 
Star of the Sea!' 



TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY. 

MARY, HEALTH OF THE WEAK. 

"Moses made a brazen serpent and set it up for 
a sigh." Num. xxi. 9. 

THE Hebrews were marching through 
the vast wilderness of Arabia, and 
turning to the right or to the left, accord- 
ing to the movements of the miraculous 
cloud given to them by the Almighty for 
a guide. The Lord, like a loving Father, 
provided for their wants, supplying them 
with water and healthy food in the midst 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 281 

of the barrenness of the arid desert. Af- 
ter having marched to Mount Hor, on 
the confines of Edom, the people began 
to be weary of their journey and labor; 
and, speaking against God and Moses 
they said, Why didst thou bring us out 
of Egypt to die in the wilderness ? Why 
have you brought us into this wretched 
place, which cannot be sowed, nor bring- 
eth forth figs nor vines nor pomegran- 
ates, neither is there any water to drink? 
There is no bread, and our soul loatheth 
this very light food. Wherefore the 
Lord sent among the people fiery ser- 
pents, which bit them and killed many of 
them. The people repented, and ac- 
knowledged their sin, and Moses prayed 
for the people ; and the Lord said to 
him, Make a brazen serpent, and set 
it up for a sign; whoever, being struck, 
shall look upon it, shall live {Num. xx. 
19). Christ himself instructs us to 
recognize in this miraculous serpent the 
virtue of his cross; on it he was to be 
lifted up for the salvation of all those 
who were perishing from the bite of the 
serpent of destruction. But is not the 
Most Holy Virgin also signified in the 
serpent of the desert? It was given to 
the Hebrews, that by looking on it those 
who were bitten might obtain life and 



282 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

health. Mary has been given to Chris- 
tians, that in their infirmities, whether 
spiritual or corporal, they might find re- 
lief and health in her protection. Hence 
the Church, in her liturgy, honors the 
Blessed Virgin vrith the glorious title of 
Health of the Weak. 

I. 

God in the beginning created man im- 
mortal, and constituted him in sanctify- 
ing grace. After a certain time of proba- 
tion on earth, he was to have mounted to 
heaven in body and soul, there to enter 
into the possession of eternal bliss. 
Adam, by transgressing the command of 
God, forfeited sanctity and justice, and 
incurred the anger of the Lord and the 
penalty of death. Man by sin was thus 
reduced, both in soul and body, to a con- 
dition far different from that in which he 
had been constituted. Sin is, therefore, 
the source of all the evils which afflict us. 
To the soul, it is the cause of the loss of 
grace and original innocence; and to the 
body, it is the cause of death and all the 
evils which pervade it. As soon as Adam 
sinned, death began to germinate in his 
being, and, in virtue of the eternal de- 
crees it is to germinate in all his posted- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY, 



283 



ty. In his early years man grows like a 
flower of spring; the rose of health ting- 
es his cheeks, and robustness nerves his 
frame ; still in his whole body, in his 
very veins and sinews, the agents of death 
are quietly at work and decay and disso- 
lution are the inevitable result. We 
are dying every day. And do we not per- 
ceive that our strength is daily wearing a- 
way? Tne variableness of the seasons, 
heat and cold and the unhealthfulness of 
the atmosphere, hunger, thirst, exposure, 
accidents, diseases, are engaged in the ser- 
vice of death every hour and render our 
life one of weakness and sorrow. 

Our comfort in life is our tender mother 
Mary. She, by the power which she en- 
joys from God. can heal all our infirmities. 
God in his goodness has given to us 
human means of health, and these we are 
to employ; but our sovereign remedy is 
Mary. She gave birth to the Physician, 
she produced tne Medicine of the human 
race {St. Bernardin. Serm. de B. V.). 
Whilst our divine Redeemer was preach- 
ing his heavenly doctrine, he confirmed 
his teachings by miracles, and there was 
no land or city through which he passed 
that could not boast of many cures per- 
formed by him. In this, according to 
the Fathers, Jesus Christ had two princi- 



284 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY'. 

pal objects in view: the one to give relief 
to languishing humanity, he being the 
father of men ; the other, that the wit- 
nesses of these prodigies might believe 
in him and embrace the faith which he 
announced. In this way, whilst he re- 
stored soundness to the body, he be- 
stowed health upon the soul. Mary acts 
in a similar manner with us, she obtains 
health for the infirm in order to draw 
them more easily to God. Temporal fa- 
vors are always granted with a view to 
the spiritual life. We do not read of 
Mary, that she gave health to anyone 
whilst she remained on earth ; but now 
that she is reigning in heaven, she is 
most prodigal in bestowing such blessings 
on those who devoutly invoke her. There 
is no kind of infirmity, or misfortune, or 
tribulation, which Mary possesses not the 
power to heal. To this bear witness the 
countless votive tablets which are sus- 
pended around her altars in all the cities 
of every Christian land. How many 
have been raised by Mary from sickness 
to health! To how many has speech and 
hearing and sight been restored through 
her intercession! How many have es- 
caped all the horrors of shipwreck 
through the interposition of her power! 
The Blessed Virgin banishes famine, 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 285 

and feeds the starving. She acts toward 
us like the widow of Sarephta, who gave 
bread to Elias languishing with hunger. 
Mary quenches thirst. She was prefig- 
ured, according to commentators, in the 
fair Rebecca who, being asked for a 
draught of water by the servant of Abra- 
ham, gave drink not only to him but also 
to his camels. Mary, as the spouse of 
the Canticles, is the fountain of gardens, 
the well of living waters(CV*#£ iv. 1 5). St. 
Methodius teaches that Mary was pre- 
figured in the cistern of Bethlehem, so 
ardently desired by David, to refresh 
him in his burning thirst {Orat. in Hypap.). 
St. Epiphanius salutes Mary in the fol- 
lowing words: Hail, fall of grace, thou 
who dost refresh the thirsty with the 
sweetness of perennial waters. Mary is, 
therefore, the health of the weak and the 
comfort of the afflicted. In our infirmities 
we have reason to hope more from her 
kindness than from physical and tem- 
poral remedies. 

II. 

The soul is liable to infirmities as well 
as the body; and, as the soul is a far more 
noble substance than the body, its infirmi- 
ties are more pernicious. The infirmities 



286 ThJ£ MOJSI'JH OF OUR LaDX . 

of the body hasten temporal death; but 
those of the soul lead to death eternal. 
The infirmities of the soul are evil pas- 
sions. Our fever, says St. Ambrose, is 
avarice, impurity, anger, ambition. In- 
firmities of the soul are, also,the darkness 
and ignorance of the understanding, the 
tendency to evil of the will, the violence 
of concupiscence, the assaults of the 
world, the devil, and the flesh, fears, 
suspicions, weariness, and discontent of 
mind and heart. 

By the sins of our first parents, we 
were injured not only in body, but also, 
and particularly, in the facultiesof the soul; 
and hence it is that we so frequently a- 
bandon ourselves to our corrupt inclin- 
ations and become guilty of sin. But 
the Blessed Virgin, by her powerful pat- 
ronage, defends us against evil, and heals 
all our infirmities, if we invoke her pro- 
tection with devotion and confidence. We 
need light to dissipate the darkness of our 
understanding. This light is procured for 
us by Mary. She obtains knowledge for 
the ignorant and instruction for the un- 
tutored. She was prefigured in the wise 
Debbora, who, seated under a palm tree, 
instructed the children of Israel in their 
duties; and also in the prophetess Holda, 
who explained to the ignorant people the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 2 ST 

things of God. Mary strengthens the 
will to seek with constancy what is praise- 
worthy. She gives salutary counsel for 
the rejection of evil and the performance 
of good; she excites contempt of the 
world in the heart of man, and infuses the 
love of virtue; she disengages the affec- 
tions from transitory and earthly things, 
and transfers them to God alone; she fur- 
nishes man with courage to shake off the 
infamous yoke of the devil, to overcome 
the enticements of the flesh, to restrain 
the fury of concupiscence, to break the 
chains of sinful habits ; she disposes him 
for the desire of eternal blessings, and 
leads him to operate justice and right- 
eousness. Hence she is compared to the 
serpent raised by Moses in the wilderness, 
by lifting their eyes to which, those who 
had been bitten by venomous serpents 
recovered their wonted health. She is 
compared to the pond of Jerusalem, 
called Probatica, which had the virtue of 
making whole of whatsoever infirmity 
he lay under, him that went down first 
into the pond after the motion of the 
water {John v. 4). 

All that has been said of Mary is con- 
firmed by the Fathers and saints of the 
Church. Mary, writes one of her devout 
servants, is the refuge of sinners, the 



288 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

secure asylum of those who are suffering 
under temptation or calamity or perse- 
cution. She is the most liberal dispen- 
ser of favors and the merciful mother of 
all the faithful. Mary, writes St. Andrew 
of Crete, is the propitiatory of the whole 
world. Through her the Lord speaks to 
the heart and bestows pardon; through 
her he shows himself appeased, forgives 
crimes, and distributes his divine bless- 
ings; from her every good derives to us, 
for she is assiduous in her supplications 
for the unfortunate. St. John of Damas- 
cus, apostrophizing the Blessed Virgin, 
exclaims: Having trust in thee I shall be 
saved; with thy protection I shall have 
nothing to fear; with thy patronage, thy 
assistance as a breastplate, I shall attack 
my enemies and put them to flight {Orat. 
de Annunt.). Mary, therefore, is the health 
of the weak in weakness, both of soul 
and body. 

ASPIRATION. 

Teach me to rule my tongue, Most 
Blessed Virgin Mary. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 289 
PRACTICE. 

Perform some act or recite some pray- 
er in honor of Mary, morning, noon, and 
night. 

LITANY. 

Read Our Lady of Lourdes. 



TWENTY-EIGHTH DAY. 

MARY, PROTECTRESS OF CHRISTIANS. 

"If I have found favor in thy sight, O King, 
and if it please thee, give me my life for which 
I ask, and my people for which I request." Es- 
ther vii. 3. 

TZING ASSUERUS had already signed 
A\ the fatal edict against the Jews, and 
the perfidious Aman had commanded the 
governors of all the provinces of the em- 
pire to exterminate all the Hebrews un- 
der their authority. The edict struck 
the Jews with consternation. They 
clothed themselves with sackcloth, 



290 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



and sprinkled ashes upon their heads, 
and filled the air with cries and lamenta- 
tions. Mardochai entreated Esther to 
interpose in behalf of her people, and ob- 
tain the revocation of the edict. She 
presented herself before Assuerus, and 
pleased his eyes ; and he said to her: 
What is thy petition, Esther, that it may 
be granted to thee ? and what wilt thou 
have done? Although thou ask the 
half of my kingdom, thou shalt have it. 
Then she answered: If I have found fav- 
or in thy sight, O king, and if it please 
thee, give me my life for which I ask, 
and my people for which I request (Esth. 
vii. 2, 3 ). The anger of Assuerus was 
appeased ; the edict was revoked ; and a 
new light of joy and honor rose to the 
Jews (viii. 16 ). Who is ignorant that 
Mary was prefigured in the heroines of 
the Old Testament ? That the Fathers 
recognize in Esther protecting the He- 
brews, a figure of Mary, the protectress 
of the Christians? Aman had vowed 
the destruction of Israel, but Assuerus, 
yielding to the prayers of Esther, par- 
doned the Jews, and took them into fav- 
or. Satan has resolved upon the ruin 
of all Christians and wages incessant 
war against them ; but shielded by the 
protection of Mary, who shall be able to 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY 29i 

overcome us? And Mary displays es- 
pecial kindness in protecting Christians 
against their enemies. 

I. 

The holy Scriptures teach us that God 
has assigned an angel guardian to man. 
The Psalmist says: He hath given his an- 
gels charge over thee, to keep thee in all 
thy ways. In their hands they shall bear 
thee up; lest thou dash thy foot against a 
stone. Thou shalt walk upon the asp and 
the basilisk; and thou shalt trample under 
foot the lion and the dragon (Ps. xc. 10). 
We learn from the prophet Daniel that 
the kingdom of the Persians and that of 
the Greeks were placed under the guar- 
dianship of angels ; and it is the common 
opinion of the Fathers, that besides king- 
doms, dioceses also, cities and their 
communities, each have their guardian 
angel. But to whom has the Lord in- 
trusted the guardianship of the whole 
Christian family ? To the Blessed Virgin, 
the help of Christians, who is as the 
defending angel of all the faithful. But 
at what time was granted to us this angel 
of defence ? The Savior was hanging 
upon the cross, the work of redemption 
was about to be consummated. Around 



292 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



the cross stood Mary and John, Mary of 
Cleophas and Mary Magdalen. The Sav- 
ior bends down his dying eyes and be- 
holds his mother and his beloved disciple. 
He wishes to give a last proof of love to St- 
John, and in him to all who should be- 
lieve in himself; and he says to his mother: 
Behold thy son; and to his disciple: Be- 
hold thy mother; and from that hour the 
disciple took her to his own {John xix. 
26). Jesus thus provided for Mary a filial 
companion, and for all the faithful a 
most loving mother. After the death of 
the Savior she was regarded by the apos- 
tles and all believers as a mother. She 
strengthened the weak, consoled the af- 
flicted, assured the doubtful, and con- 
firmed them all in the faith of the resur- 
rection (Com. a Lap. in Joan, C, 19). 
After this life Mary passed to heaven, 
and there reigning in glory she watches 
over and protects her servants. But the 
Holy Virgin was our mother before the 
tragedy of Calvary. Being Mother of 
the Head, writes William of Paris {in 
Cant. 4), she became mother of the 
members. Mary is the mother of Christ, 
therefore of the members of Christ. 
Christ is our head ; by giving birth bod- 
ily to the Head, Mary gave birth spiritu- 
ally to the members. Hence she is called 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 293 

mother by all Christians,and by all is hon- 
ored as a mother should be honored. 
Richard of St. Lawrence (C. 2 de B. V.) 
styles her mother of Christ by nature 
and beneficent mother of Christians by 
grace. And Mary has indeed the heart of 
a mother, for she is watching over us con- 
tinually to aid us, succor us, and save us 
from perishing. 

It has been already observed that 
Mary is the angel given by the Almighty 
to all Christians, as a body, to keep them 
in all their ways. We read in Genesis 
(xlviii. 16) that God gave to Jacob an 
angel that delivered him from all evils. 
It is the office therefore of angels to de- 
liver men from the evils and dangers that 
threaten them. Mary discharges this 
office most faithfully in our regard. The 
world is full of perils. They are met 
with, according to St. Paul, in journeys, 
in rivers, in false brothers, in cities, in 
solitudes, in labor, in affliction, in hunger, 
thirst, and nakedness. St. John admon- 
ishes us, that all that is in the world is 
the concupiscence of the flesh, and the 
concupiscence of the eyes, and the pride 
of life (1 John ii. 16). But Mary, after God, 
is our deliverer. Whilst living, says St. 
Bonaventure {Sflec.C. 8), she had compas- 
sion on the unfortunate ; but far greater 



294 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

is her mercy now, and far more abundant 
the graces which she obtains for us. We 
read in the book of Tobias (viii. 3), 
that the angel Raphael, who served as 
guide for Tobias, took the devil and 
bound him in the desert of Upper Egypt. 
It is a part, therefore, of the office of the 
angels to resist the devil and prevent him 
from doing injury. The prince of apos- 
tles teaches us (1 Pet. v. 8) that our ad- 
versary, the devil, as a roaring lion, goeth 
about, seeking whom he may devour. 
But the Almighty has bestowed upon 
Mary so great power over the tempta- 
tion of the devil, that as soon as one of 
her devout servants, attacked by him, 
implores her assistance, at one sign of 
her presence he takes to flight covered 
with confusion (St. Brig. Rev.). We 
find in Exodus that the Lord said to his 
people through Moses: Behold 1 will 
send my angel, who shall go before thee, 
and keep thee in thy journey, and bring 
thee into the place that I have prepared. 
Take notice of him, and bear his voice, 
and do not think him one to be con- 
temned; for he vvill not forgive when thou 
hast sinned, and my name is in him. But 
if thou wilt hear his voice, and do all that I 
speak, I will be an enemy to thy enemies, 
and will afflict them that afflict thee (xxiii. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 295 



20). Is not Mary the angel sent us by 
Almighty God to suggest good thoughts 
to our mind that we may embrace good 
and avoid evil? If he commanded Moses 
and the Israelites to honor their angel, 
will he not require as much of all Chris- 
tians? Will he not insist upon their tribut- 
ing due honor to his own, and our Most 
Holy Mother? Let us address Mary, with 
St. Bonaventure [in Spec. c. 6)\ O great 
Lady, by that power which was con- 
ferred upon thee, in view of thy sublime 
dignity of Mother of God, thou hast sway 
over the demons; restrain therefore their 
audacity that they may not work usharm; 
as Queen of angels, keep our welfare in 
view and command the angels subject to 
thy authority to defend us against the 
temptations of the infernal spirits. 

It is registered in the book of the A- 
pocalypse, that it belongs to the angels 
to offer up our prayers before the throne 
of God. And another angel came and 
stood before the altar, having a golden 
censer ; and there was given him much 
incense, that he should offer the prayers 
of all saints upon the golden altar which 
is before the throne of God. And the 
smoke of the incense of the prayers of 
the saints ascended up before God from 
the hand of the angel (viii. 3, 4). It is 



296 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

certain that every grace flows from God, 
and that every best gift is from above, 
coming down from the Father of lights, 
with whom there is no change nor shad- 
ow of vicissitude {James i. 17). But as 
Christ intercedes for us with the Father, 
we are favored with the intercession of 
the angels, the apostles, the patriarchs, 
the prophets, the martyrs, the confessors 
and the virgins; but far greater ex- 
cellence, far greater virtue, does the in- 
tercession of the ever blessed Virgin 
possess. What they united can accom- 
plish, says St. Anselm, she alone can more 
easily perform; for she is the queen of the 
angels and of all the saints. Mary in a 
certain manner merited to be the mother 
of the Redeemer and the Judge of man- 
kind. Who could be more powerful, 
therefore, to draw down the favors of the 
Redeemer and appease the anger of the 
Judge ? 

When Esther presented herself before 
Assuerus, she said: If I have found favor 
in thy sight, O king, and if it please thee, 
give my life for which I ask, and my peo- 
ple for which I request. For we are given 
up, I and my people, to be destroyed, 
to be slain, and to perish. Esther had be- 
fore requested Mardochai to gather to- 
gether all the Jews in Susan, and pray to 



THjE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 297 

the Lord for her. In presenting herself 
before Assuerus she united the prayers 
of the people with her own, and the an- 
ger of the king was appeased. Mary acts 
in a similar manner in our behalf. If 
Assuerus yielded to the prayers of Es- 
ther, will not the Almighty be propitiated 
by the prayers of Mary? Richard of St. 
Lawrence, speaking of the prayers of 
Mary says, She not only can entreat her 
Son, like the other saints, to have com- 
passion on her servants, but she can em- 
ploy with her Son her authority as his 
mother. When the angel declared to her 
that the Lord was with her, he indicated 
her dignity and her authority with her 
Son. Whilst of the other saints it is said 
that they are with the Lord, of Mary it 
is said that the Lord is with her. Mary 
is the Protectress of Christians. 

ASPIRATION. 

From anger and hatred and all per- 
verseness of will, deliver me, Holy Vir- 
gin Mary. 

PRACTICE. 

Thank Mary frequently for the favors 
which she has obtained for you. 



298 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

LITANY. 

Read the Book of Esther. 



TWENTY-NINTH DAY. 

MARY, CONSOLER OF THE AFFLICTED. 

"Among the cities which you shall give to the 
Levites, six shall be separated for refuge to fu- 
gitives." Num. xxxv. 6. 

THE goodness and justice of God are 
both infinite. He rewards the just 
in proportion to their merits, and punish- 
es the wicked according to their mis- 
deeds. With this principle in view, he 
issued the commandments on Mount Si- 
nai. He also prescribed that the guilty 
should be subjected to temporal punish- 
ment, even to the punishment of death. 
But in his mercy he set apart six cities 
amongst those assigned to the tribes of 
Levi, to serve as places of refuge for those 
who should shed blood against their will. 
Three of these cities were beyond the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



299 



Jordan, and three in the land of Chanaan. 
As the Hebrews in the old law had places 
of refuge, we, also, in the new law of grace, 
possessarefuge, and one of peculiar excel- 
lence. The asylums of the Hebrews pro- 
tected those alone who were guilty of in- 
voluntary homicide. Our refuge furnish- 
es shelter to all the guilty, even to those 
stained with the greatest crimes. What 
city of refuge has been given to us? St. 
John of Damascus replies that our city 
of refuge is Mary (Serm. II. de Dom. V.). 
St. Bernard answers, also: In every temp- 
tation, in every tribulation, in every ne- 
cessity, the city of refuge is open to ad- 
mit us, the bosom of the loving mother 
(Serm. ix. in. Ps. Qui habit?)* Mary is the 
holy city seen by St. John. She is the 
city of refuge, because she reconciles the 
sinner with God and conducts. him to e- 
ternal happiness. 

I. 

Sin is defined by St. Augustine as 
something said or done or desired in 
opposition to the eternal law of God ; by 
St. Ambrose, as a breaking of the law 
of God, and disobedience to the com- 
mandments of heaven, It is wrong done 
the majesty of God by a creature. It is 



300 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



the sovereign evil of all evils; and no ef- 
fort of the human mind, aided by what- 
ever of deformity and horror the imagina- 
tion .can represent, will ever be able to 
form a conception of its monstrousness. 
Sin, says St. Thomas (x'\x <?. 71, a. 6 ), 
is a turning away from God to turn to the 
creature. This, assuredly, is a great 
wrong perpetrated against God, and a 
greater insult could not be offered him. 
Sin is opposed to the unity of God, giving 
to the creature a portion of the homage 
due to God alone. It is opposed to the 
goodness of God, because, instead of re- 
garding him as the chief good and the 
source of all that is good, it practically 
acknowledges in the creature perfection 
not derived from him. It is opposed to 
the Incarnation, because it diminishes 
the benefits produced by it. But what 
language could express the evil which it' 
brings upon the soul? It withdraws us 
from God, and binds us to creatures, 
which are nothing but vanity. It despoils 
us of grace and virtue, excludes us from 
eternal bliss, spreads darkness over the 
understanding, and creates perplexity in 
the will, torments and tears the con- 
science, and leads to eternal damnation. 
Sin is so destructive in its own nature 
that in this world it causes spiritual death 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 301 



to the soul by depriving it of sanctifying 
grace — the principle of supernatural life; 
and in the world to come it causes true 
death to the soul by depriving it of God. 
Should we die in mortal sin we are lost 
forever. If we sin grievously, even once 
more, may we not be called to our last ac- 
count without a moment's warning? 

Sin impresses a stain upon the soul, 
and this stain continues until it is washed 
out by penance and sanctifying grace. 
Stains, properly speaking, . belong to ma- 
terial substances which lose their bright- 
ness by coming in contact with another 
body; but they are said figuratively to af- 
fect the spiritual substance of the soul. 
The soul possesses twofold purity: the 
one is derived from the natural light of 
reason, by which the soul is guided in its 
natural operations; the other, from the 
light of grace, by which man is fitted for 
supernatural works. When the soul at- 
taches itself to some object, it comes, as it 
were, in contact with it. But by sinning 
the soul attaches itself to what is con- 
trary to the light of reason and the law 
of God; hence, the prejudice to purity 
which arises from such a contact is met- 
aphorically called a stain of the soul. 
This stain is not any thing positive in 
the soul, nor does it signify privation 



302 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

simply, but a privation of purity or bright- 
ness in the soul with reference to sin 
which is its cause; and as sins admit many 
varieties, so the stains of the soul which 
arise from them are various. When the 
soul, therefore, endowed by the Almighty 
with the light of reason, and enriched 
with the light of grace, wilfully extin- 
guishes by sin the light of grace and re- 
ceives the stamp of iniquity, it must nec- 
essarily be regarded with abhorrence by 
the Author of reason and grace. 

When a man has committed a griev- 
ous offence against the sovereign author- 
ity, and knows that, sooner or later, the 
matter will be investigated and the mer- 
ited punishment decreed, what does the 
conscience-stricken offender? He repents 
of his deed; he is tortured by fear; he finds 
no peace amongst his friends; he with- 
draws from society; he flies for refuge to 
some distant or solitary place. His only 
hope is that some powerful influence 
may be brought to bear in his favor and 
the remission of his punishment be thus 
obtained. So it is with the sinner. His 
conscience keeps the memory of his 
crimes vivid in his mind, and forebodes 
the approaching penalty. He becomes in- 
consolably miserable. Honors, treasures, 
possessions, amusements, friends, afford 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 303 



him no consolation. He flies from place 
to place, from scene to scene, but he 
cannot escape his torment. Even night 
brings him little relief, for his very sleep 
is restless. He can say with David, I 
walked sorrowful all the day long, and 
my sin is always against me 
{Ps. xxxvii. 7; 1. 5). But happy are we 
to have a mother to watch over us who 
not only endeavors to save us from mis- 
fortune, but is willing and able to give us 
relief after we have brought misfortune 
on ourselves. This mother is Mary. The 
Church calls her Refuge of Sinners, the 
Consoler of the Afflicted. Mary is queen 
of heaven and earth. She is the Mother 
of God — the Creator of the heavens and 
the earth. She shares the dominion and 
power of her Son. The flesh of Christ is 
the flesh of Mary. If Christ is glorious 
as the only-begotten of the Most High 
and the Redeemer of man, Mary is glor- 
ious as his mother, and his mother by 
her own free consent. Hesitate not, 
O Mary, says a devout servant of hers, to 
take possession of the goods of thy Son. 
Proceed with confidence as a queen, as 
the mother and spouse of the King of 
kings. Sovereignty is, also, by will of 
heaven, an undeniable right of thine. 
Mary, writes St. Bernard {in Sign. Mag.), 



304 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



is made all things to all; she owes 
boundless charity to the wise and to the 
ignorant. She throws open the treasure 
of her mercy that all may receive from 
it; the captive, ransom; the weak, health; 
the afflicted, consolation; the sinner, 
pardon; and God himself, glory. Justly, 
therefore, is she invoked as the 
Consoler of the afflicted. 

II. 

It cannot be denied that a great tribu- 
lation overhangs the sinner at the hour 
of death, and the more terrible because 
it is accompanied by the danger of eter- 
nal ruin. At that last moment the ene- 
my represents to the sinner all the evil 
doings of his life. He recalls to his mem- 
ory his neglect of grace. He portrays 
to him most vividly the severity of judg- 
ment and the rigorous account which he 
will have to render. He endeavors to 
frighten him with the thought of time 
wasted, of the mercy of God abused, of all 
the horrors of hell deserved by his sins. 
He omits no effort, no artifice, to create 
a want of confidence in God's goodness, 
and to drag the sinner into the abyss of 
despair. Woe to the sinner, because the 
devil is come down unto him, having 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



305 



great wrath, knowing that he hath but a 
short time (Aftoc. xii. 12). 

But the greater the danger of the child, 
the greater the solicitude of the fond 
mother. So it is with Mary towards her 
devout servants in the trials and temp- 
tations of death. St. Jerome writes (Bp. 
ii. ad Eustock.). Not only does the Bless- 
ed Virgin not neglect to give succor 
to her dying children, but she herself, in 
person, aids them in their last strug- 
gles, and defends them and protects them 
against the assaults of our common en- 
emy. God has granted to the Holy Vir- 
gin such power over the malignant spir- 
its that they flee at the slightest indica- 
tion of her will. St. Bonaventure fre- 
quently addressed the following prayer 
to the Blessed Virgin: Holy Mother, in 
virtue of thy most exalted dignity of the 
mother of God, thou hast power to rule 
the demons. Curb their audacity so that 
they may not do us injury in our last mo- 
ments, and cause the angels of heaven to 
descend and guard us. 

ASPIRATION. 

Holy Mary, obtain for me grace to love 
Jesus. 



306 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

PRACTICE. 

Give alms in honor of Mary. 

LITANY. 

Read the Book of the Apocalypse. 



THIRTIETH DAY. 

DEVOTION TO THE SACRED HEART OF 
MARY. 

*'I was exalted as a rose plant in Jericho. " 
Eccl. xxiv. 1 8 

GOD is charity; and he that abideth in 
charity abideth in God, and God in 
him (i John iv. 16). The annals of our re- 
ligion furnish us with innumerable exam- 
ples of true charity. But as in dignity 
so in charity, Mary is far exalted above 
all the other saints. She was chosen 
from eternity to be the mother of God. 
In time God was united with her, not 
only by enlightening her and adorning 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 307 

her with grace, but also with a kind of 
real identity, taking from her his own 
flesh and blood. Mary corresponded 
faithfully with the grace bestowed upon 
her, loving God more ardently than any 
other saint. She loved God with her 
whole heart, her whole will, and her 
whole mind ; and with power of heart, will, 
and mind, assisted by the fulness of grace. 
For this reason she is compared to a rose 
plant in Jericho. Besides, according to 
Albertus Magnus, where there is greater 
purity there is greater charity; hence the 
virgin, as purest of all creatures, acknowl- 
edges among them no equal in charity. 
Let us now consider the motives of the 
devotion to the Sacred Heart of Mary, 
and learn in what manner we should hon- 
or her. 

I. 

The reasons which induced the Church 
to approve of the devotion to the Sacred 
Heart of Jesuswerethesamewhich caused 
the approbation of the devotion to the 
Sacred Heart of Mary. As the heart is 
commonly considered the symbol of love 
and the seat of affections, it was judged 
proper to pay public honor to the Sacred 
Heart of Mary, that the minds of the 
faithful mightbethus led to reflect onthe 



308 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

exceeding great love for God and for us 
with which Mary was inflamed. The 
Church proposed to us the practice of 
devotion to the Sacred Heart of Mary to 
excite our piety, and increase our love 
and gratitude towards Mary the mother 
of Jesus. As Mary was most intimately 
united with Jesus both in the order of 
grace and the order of nature, it is but 
reasonable and natural that they who 
practise devotion to the Heart of Jesus 
should practise it also to the Heart of 
Mary, This is indicated in the order of 
Providence regarding Mary, and the prac- 
tice of the Church in honoring her. In 
the Incarnation of the word, the sub- 
stance of Mary became the substance of 
her son Jesus. During the private life 
of our Savior, Mary was his inseparable 
companion. We find them together in 
the stable, and in the temple on the day 
of the purification. They fled together 
into Egypt and returned again. They 
dwelt in the same house, sat at the same 
table, and on solemn occasions went to- 
gether to Jerusalem. Mary was with Je- 
sus at the marriage in Cana of Galilee 
and at Capharnaum ; and tradition in- 
forms us that she followed Jesus during 
the whole course of his public life. When 
she heard of his capture in the garden 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 309 

she hastened to meet him, and shared in 
her heart all his sufferings. She was 
present when her Son consummated his 
holocaust of expiation for the redemp- 
tion of mankind. Mary, therefore, dur- 
ing the thirty-three years of Christ's life 
on earth was always with him. 

The Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, 
attributes to Mary, by a kind of appropri- 
ation, those titles which in strict propriety 
belong only to her son — God made man. 
Christ is our King, Mary our Queen; 
Christ is our Father, Mary our Mother; 
Christ is our advocate and mediator, 
Mary our advocate and mediatrix. Christ 
is our hope, the health of the weak, the 
refuge of sinners, the consoler of the 
afflicted, and the help of Christians; and 
the Church in all her liturgy assigns all 
these titles to Mary. Christ is for the 
faithful the mirror of justice, the seat of 
wisdom and the cause of spiritual joy; and 
the same, on the authority of the Church, 
is also Mary. During our pilgrimage on 
earth, Christ is our guide and our light, 
and Mary is the star that directs our steps 
and conducts us to heaven. Jesus is 
King and Lord of patriarchs, prophets, a- 
postles, martyrs, confessors, and virgins; 
and Mar)' is celebrated as queen of an- 
gels and all the saints. 



310 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

That Mary was the most highly privi- 
leged of all mere creatures cannot be 
called in question, for she alone was el- 
evated to the most sublime dignity of 
Mother of God; but she also, of all pure 
creatures, loved God most ardently. 
The language of the Fathers of the 
Church fully justifies this assertion. Ac- 
cording to them, Mary was all inflamed 
with the ardor of charity; and the bush 
that burned without being consumed 
was a symbol of her love. Mary loved 
God in strictness of truth, with her whole 
heart, her whole soul, and her whole 
strength. The love which she bore her 
son was unlimited. The measure of the 
graces which she received from God was 
the measure of her love. Her love for 
God surpassed the love of all creatures; 
her soul was melted in the intensity of 
her love. No mind, says St. Jerome 
{Serin, de Assumpt.), no heart, no human 
power, can conceive or express the great- 
ness of the love of Mary. When the 
Virgin conceived, writes William the 
Abbot {in Cant. c. 2 ), she received into 
her heart as great ardor of love, by virtue 
of the Holy Spirit, as a mere creature was 
capable of receiving. Shall we not pay 
devotion to the Sacred Heart of Mary, 
the symbol of her love for God? 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 31 1 

Mary cherished also a most fervent 
love for man. Considering the countless 
evils with which man was afflicted on 
account of the sin of Adam, she most 
ardently desired the coming of the 
promised Messias, the Savior of the 
world; and she offered continual entreat- 
ies to the Father that he would hasten 
the coming down of the desire of the e- 
ternal hills and the expectation of the na- 
tions. When she gave her consent to the 
Incarnation of the Word in her bosom, 
it was for our spiritual welfare; hence she 
is deservedly called the [Mother of Fair 
Love, because in the union with Jesus she 
is our mediatrix and co-operated in our 
redemption. But it was on Golgotha that 
Mary displayed the greatness of her love 
for mankind. It was there, says St. 
Bernardine, that she saw squandered the 
price of the world's redemption; the forti- 
tude of the saints in agony; the beautiful 
above the sons of men covered with 
blood; the Lord of the Universe hanging 
between two thieves; the King of heav- 
en treated with insult, and the Author of 
life yielding up his spirit in death. But the 
holy Virgin, out of love for us, submit- 
ted with unmurmuring resignation. The 
wills of Jesus and Mary were perfectly li- 
nked; they both offered one and the same 



312 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

holocaust; Mary in her heart, Jesus by 
shedding his blood; thus she, in union 
with Jesus, obtained the salvation of 
mankind. How great must have been 
her love for us? And should we not be 
devout to her Sacred Heart, the symbol 
of this love? 

II. 

Having considered the principal mo- 
tives which should incite us to devotion 
to the Sacred Heart of Mary, the inquiry 
remains, In what manner ought we to 
honor Mary by this devotion? In the 
same manner which she observed in the 
exercise of her love for God. Mary loved 
God with the utmost ardor, and her puri- 
ty was the measure of her love. We 
should therefore honor Mary by the es- 
pecial practice of the two virtues of purity 
and charity. God possessed Mary in the 
beginning of his ways, before he gave ex- 
istence to creatures. When the time of 
her conception arrived, grace anticipated 
nature, and she was conceived without 
stain of sin. In the opinion of the Fathers, 
Mary enjoyed immediately the use of rea- 
son, and was aware of the privilege of 
grace bestowed upon her. The heart of 
Mary was deeply impressed with grati- 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



313 



tude; and eager to offer to God what she 
had received from God, at the age of three 
she consecrated to him in the temple her 
virginity, by perpetual vow. By this sac- 
rifice she concealed herself from the eyes 
of the world in order to live to God alone; 
she withdrew from her parents to be 
more closely united with her Creator; 
she made a vow of virginity when the 
hope of giving birth to the Messias ren- 
dered it a reproach to Hebrew women to 
be childless. After having passed her 
early years in the exercise of every vir- 
tue, she was visited by an angel, and de- 
clared the future mother of God. Mind- 
ful of the vow, she inquired how such an 
event could be accomplished since she 
had dedicated to the Almighty her vir- 
ginity? Nor did she yield her consent un- 
til assured that no prejudice should hap- 
pen to her virginity. 

If the thought of the favors received 
from God moved the virgin to offer him 
her purity, it is clear what feelings were 
in her heart — how intense was her char- 
ity. Mary surpassed all the heroines 
of the Old Testament. Sara was praised 
for fidelity; but greater praise was giv- 
en to Mary, when it was said to her: 
Blessed art thou who hast believed. Re- 
becca was renowned as beautiful, but 



314 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

Mary is called more beautiful than 
the sun. Rachel was amiable and gained 
the heart of Jacob ; but Mary gained 
the heart of him whose love wrought a 
reconciliation between God and man. 
Lia was fruitful, but far more fruitful 
Mary; for although she gave birth to one 
son only, she brought forth many chil- 
dren to salvation. Debbora was extolled 
for her wisdom; but the virgin was the 
habitation of wisdom itself. Esther was 
humble, but far more humble Mary; for 
God regarded the humility of his hand- 
maid. Judith was valiant, and slew Hol- 
ofernes, but the valiant Mary crushed 
the head of the arrogant serpent. Mary's 
constant practice of virtue proves how 
greatly she loved the Almighty God. We 
may therefore conclude with St. Thomas 
of Villanova (Cone. \.in Nat. Vi'rg-.),th3.t 
the virgin by her ardent charity so cap- 
tivated the heart of Almighty God that 
he came down into her bosom and took 
upon himself the nature of man. 

ASPIRATION. 

Heart of Jesus, grant me heavenly love! 
Heart of Mary, obtain for me charity! 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 315 
PRACTICE. 

Every Saturday offer some act of mor- 
tification, and practise some devotion, in 
honor of the Sacred Heart of Mary. 

LITANY. 

Read Imitation of the Blessed Virgin. 



THIRTY-FIRST DAY. 

PERSEVERANCE IN THE LOVE OF MARY. 

"He that shall persevere unto the end, he shall 
be saved." Matt. x. 22. 

GOD in his goodness and wisdom, cre- 
ated men for eternal happiness in 
heaven. As God, in the doctrine of St. 
Thomas, grants graces corresponding 
to the end and dignity to which he des- 
tines men in this life, there can be no 
doubt that he bestows upon every man 
the graces necessary for the gaining of 
heaven, his last end. When the soul 
is united with the body it is stained with 



316 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



original sin; but man is purified of this 
stain in baptism, and sanctifying grace 
is infused into him, and the germ of the 
holy virtues by the exercise of which he 
can work out his eternal salvation. But 
to be actually saved, man must persevere 
in living virtuously to the last moment 
of his existence. He that shall persevere 
to the end shall be saved. 

Applying now to the Blessed Virgin 
what has been said respecting God, he 
who wishes to have Mary for an advocate 
must persevere in devotion to her. Not 
without a hidden meaning is she com- 
pared with the cedar, the cypress, and 
the olive; and it is that, whilst she is un- 
failing in protecting us and obtaining for 
us grace from God, we should exert our- 
selves to persevere in her love and devo- 
tion. He who loves God must love his 
holy Mother. Love for God cannot exist 
without love for the saints. To close 
the pious exercise of the month of May, 
let us gather together the chief motives 
which urge us to honor Mary with per- 
severance and consider briefly in what 
manner our love for her should manifest 
itself in our actions; always bearing in 
mind that he that shall persevere unto 
the end, he shall be saved. 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 317 



I. 

The first motive which should incite 
us to love and honor Mary persevering- 
ly, is the peculiar love which the Al- 
mighty bears her as the fairest among all 
creatures. To love God means nothing 
less than to do his holy will; we, therefore, 
if we wish to love God, should love Mary 
above all the saints, because above all the 
saints is she loved by the Almighty. This 
spouse of the heavenly Solomon came 
out of the mouth of the Most High, the 
first-born before all creatures (Eccl. xxiv. 
5). Many others were dear to God, but 
she was beloved above them all. There 
are young maidens without number. 
One is my dove; my perfect one is but one 
(Cant. vi. 7, 8). God loved the heroines 
of the old law, but more than all of them 
he loved Mary. She was the first-born in 
the order of grace, and was more 
beloved by God than any other saint. 
Eminent in gifts of grace were the pa- 
triarchs, the prophets, the apostles, the 
martyrs, the confessors, and the virgins; 
but Mary was adorned with more abund- 
ant grace than they. St. Bonaventure 
calls the grace which Mary received im- 
mense, because she was full of grace; and 
she contained in her bosom him whom the 



318 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

heavens and earth could not contain. The 
prudent giver, says Albertus Magnus, 
varies his gifts according to the end 
which he has in view in bestowing them; 
the greater the end, the greater the gift. 
But grace was given to Mary to prepare 
her to be the mother of God; to the 
other saints, to enable them to be his 
servants; immeasurably greater, there- 
fore, was the gift bestowed upon Mary 
than that bestowed upon all the other 
saints. The gift which contains all other 
gifts is charity. Mary, therefore, was 
more beloved than every saint. She was 
the first-born also in the order of glory; 
for, when she was taken up into heaven, 
she was enthroned as queen of heaven 
and earth, and queen of all saints. 

Her dignity as mother of God is 
the second motive of devotion to the 
blessed virgin. Her dignity is so great, 
says St. Thomas, that God himself can- 
not render it greater. This most august 
title of Mother of God, says the de- 
vout and learned Segneri, is an abyss of 
perfection ; and from this abyss, as from 
a constant and exhaustless source, well 
up in the Virgin the honors, almost with- 
out end, which she rightfully challenges. 
As all the extraordinary honors paid to 
Christ are owed to him because he is the 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 31Q 

only-begotten of the Father, so all the 
honors due to Mary flow from her being 
the mother of God made man. From 
Mary alone the Lord took flesh, and Mary 
alone can bear the title of Mother of God. 
Mary is, therefore, exalted in dignity far 
above all other creatures. A plant, says 
Albertus Magnus, is esteemed according 
to the fruit which it produces ; the fruit 
gives value and dignity to the plant ; no 
fruit can be found on earth or in heaven 
more sublime in dignity than that which 
Mary bore; amongst mere creatures, 
therefore, no loftier dignity is possible 
than that of Mary, mother of God. To de- 
clare of Mary, says St. Anselm, that she is 
mother of God, exceeds all exaltation 
that can be conceived beneath God him- 
self. 

The favors which we receive through 
Mary form the third motive for loving 
her. All the favors imparted to us 
through Mary, are found expressed in 
abridgment in the words of the evangel- 
ist: Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who 
is called Christ {Matt. i. 16). The world 
had been involved for four thousand 
years in the darkness of sin, and Mary 
caused the light of God to send forth its 
splendor over the earth. I, that is Mary, 
made that in the heavens there should 



320 1HE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



rise light that never faileth {Eccl. xxiv. 6). 
The angels were awaiting the Savior of 
man, that the loss which the heavenly 
host had sustained in the rebellion of Lu- 
cifer might be repaired. Our first par- 
ents by their sin had closed the gates of 
Paradise and opened those of the abyss ; 
and the souls of the departed just were 
sighing in expectation of the Messias. 
Mary gave birth to him who was made 
man to suffer for our salvation and de- 
liver us by his death from the slavery of 
Satan under which we were groaning. 
Hence, in the doctrine of the Fathers, for 
these reasons she may be said to have 
co-operated in our redemption ; because 
by her assiduous and humble prayers 
she hastened the Incarnation of the 
Word ; because she gave her free consent 
to the Incarnation, and furnished human 
flesh to the only-begotten of the Most 
High ; because she consented to the sac- 
rifice on Calvary, and offered it up in 
heart in union with Jesus, her son. 
Through thee, says St. Cyril of Alexan- 
dria, through thee, O Mary, the only-be- 
gotten Son of God shone with true light 
to mortals sitting in darkness and in the 
shadow of death. 

The love which Mary bears us, is the 
fourth motive which should cause us to 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 321 

honor her with unshaken affection. To 
feel convinced that she loves us with sin- 
cere motherly love, it is sufficient to re- 
flect that, in the person of John, she was 
given to us as a mother by the dying Sav- 
ior whilst she was standing at the foot 
of his cross. Woman, behold thy Son ! 
The love of a mother is a love implanted 
in her heart by nature. Can a woman 
forget her infant, asks the prophet Isaias, 
so as not to have pity on the son of her 
womb? (xhx.16). A spiritual bond is also 
stronger than a natural bond. Mary, there- 
fore, having adopted us as her spiritual 
children,guards us with greater solicitude 
than a mother by nature guards her 
child. The graces whichGod bestows upon 
us are all bestowed in order to our spirit- 
ual life ; all Mary's exertions, therefore, 
in our behalf, aim at our spiritual 
welfare. For this reason the words of 
Ecclesiasticus are applied to her: I am the 
mother of fair love (EccL xxiv. 24). By 
nature she is the mother of Christ, by 
grace the mother of Christians. Her solic- 
itude in behalf of her children is mystic- 
ally foreshown in Queen Esther, who 
appeased by her prayers King Assuerus, 
and delivered from death the Jewish peo- 
ple, a figure of the Christian. 



322 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 



II. 

Having considered the motives which 
urge us to love Mary with perseverance, 
let us now consider in what manner, prin- 
cipally, we should show our love. The 
fruit of devotion to the Virgin must be 
the destruction of sin. This is all the 
fruit, says the Lord speaking by Isaias > 
that the sin thereof(of the house of Jacob) 
be taken away (Is. xxvii. 9 ). The design 
of all the works of nature, of all the 
works of grace, of all the blessings, both 
temporal and spiritual, which God grants 
to us, either immediately by himself, — 
as in the Sacraments, — or mediately by 
the hands of his most holy mother, — the 
design of all these, is, says the devout 
Segneri, to destroy sin, and render us 
capable of the friendship of God and the 
eternal happiness which he holds pre- 
pared for those who are dear to him. If 
Mary yielded her consent to the Incar- 
nation of the Word; if she was willing 
that her Son should offer himself to the 
Father as a victim of propitiation for our 
sins; if she accepted us as her chil- 
dren, — it was that sin might be banished 
from the world, the sinner reconciled 
with God, and restored to his rights as 
a child by grace of the Almighty and heir 



THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 323 



to the kingdom of heaven. She speaks 
to our hearts every day in the sentiments 
of the Redeemer: If you wish to enter into 
the joys of eternal life avoid sin and keep 
the commandments. Flee from sin as 
you would flee from the face of a serpent; 
its very aspect may infect you with poi- 
son and destroy your life. 

We should love Mary from the heart. 
The first commandment of God is to love 
him with the whole heart. We cannot 
therefore love Mary more truly than by 
directing to her our thoughts and the 
affections of our soul. St. Bbnaventure 
exclaims: O Mary, the sole memory of 
thee softens the feelings of my heart; thy 
loveliness consoles my spirit. Holy 
mother, thou who carriest away hearts 
by thy amiableness, hast thou not 
carried mine away? 

Mary is our mother; we should there- 
fore invoke her, reverence her, and honor 
her; we tribute the highest honor to her 
when we call upon her as our mother; as 
our teacher in the way of heaven; as our 
advocate, who obtains for us from her 
Son the forgiveness of our sins; as our 
spiritual and temporal benefactress. We 
also honor Mary by paying respect to her 
images, visiting her churches, reciting 
her Office or Holy Rosary. But what is 



324 THE MONTH OF OUR LADY. 

most agreeable to her is the imitation of 
her virtues. To prove by our conduct 
that the sentiments of our hearts are in 
union with those of her own is the surest 
way to gain her protection. It would 
be but the merest adulation to pretend 
to reverence Mary, and call upon her 
aid, without imitating her examples. 
Beware, O Christian, says a devout 
servant of Mary, that Mary do not 
repent of having conceived thee, as did 
Rebecca, when she said: If it were to be 
so with me, what need was there to con- 
ceive? (Gen. xxv. 22). If Mary should have 
to grieve in this manner concerning any 
one of us, it were better for him that he 
had never been conceived. 

ASPIRATION. 

fesus and Mary, I offer to you my heart 
and soul. 

PRACTICE. 

Resolve to be a dutiful child of Mary's 
and offer up to her all your devotions 
and all your works of piety that she may 
present them to her divine Son. 

LITANY. 

Read the Imitation of Christ. 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



325 



SUNDAY. 

Prayer to the most Blessed Virgin Mary, 
to obtain the Forgiveness of our Sins. 

Behold, O Mother of God, at thy feet a 
miserable sinner, who has recourse to 
thee and trusts in thee. I do not deserve 
that thou shouldst even look at me; but 
I know that thou, having seen thy Son 
die for the salvation of sinners, hast the 
greatest desire to help them. I hear all 
call thee the refuge of sinners, the hope 
of those who are in despair, and the help 
of the abandoned. Thou art, then, my 
refuge, my hope, and my help. Thou hast 
to save me by thy intercession. Help me, 
for the love of Jesus Christ; extend thy 
hand to a miserable creature who has 
fallen, and recommends himself to thee. 
I know that thy pleasure is to help a sin- 
ner to thy utmost; help me, therefore, 
now that thou canst do so. By my sins 
I have lost divine grace, and with it my 
soul; I now place myself in thy hands. 
Tell me what I must do to recover the 
favor of my Lord, and I will immediately 
do it. He sends me to thee that thou 
mayest help me, and He wills that I 
should have recourse to thy mercy, that 



326 PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



not only the merits of thy Son, but also 
that thy intercession may help me to 
save my soul. To thee, then, I have 
recourse; do thou, who prayest for so 
many others, pray also to Jesus for me 
Ask Him to pardon me, and He will for- 
give me; tell Him that thou desirest my 
salvation, and he will save me; show how 
thou canst enrich those who trust in thee. 
Amen. Thus I hope, thus may it be. 



MONDAY. 

Prayer to the most Blessed Virgin Mary, 
to obtain holy Perseverance. 

O Queen of Heaven, I now dedicate my- 
self to thee, to be thy servant for ever; 
I offer myself to honor thee, and serve 
thee during my whole life; do thou accept 
me, and refuse me not, as I deserve. O 
my mother, in thee have I placed my 
hopes, through thy intercession do 1 ex- 
pect every grace. I bless and thank God, 
who in His mercy has given me this con- 
fidence in thee, which I consider a pledge 
of my salvation. Alas ! I have hitherto 
fallen, because I have not had recourse 
to thee. I now hope that, through the 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 327 

merits of Jesus Christ and thy prayers, I 
have obtained pardon. But I may again 
lose Divine grace; the danger is not past. 
My enemies do not sleep. How many 
new temptations have I still to conquer ! 
Ah, my dear Mother, protect me, and per- 
mit me not again to fall; help me at all 
times. I know that thou wilt help me, 
and that with thy help I shall conquer. 
I fear that in time of danger I may neg- 
lect to call upon thee, and thus be lost. 
I ask thee, then, for this grace: obtain 
that, in the assaults of hell. I may always 
have recourse to thee, saying, Mary, help 
me. My Mother, permit me not to lose 
my God. 



TUESDAY. 

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary, to 
obtain a good Death. 

O Mary, my Mother, how shall I die? 
Even now that I think of my sins, and of 
that decisive moment on which my salva- 
tion or eternal damnation depends, of 
that moment in which I must expire and 
be judged, I tremble and am confounded. 
O my most sweet Mother, my hopes are 



328 PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



in the blood ot Jesus Christ and in thy 
intercession. O comfortress of the afflict- 
ed, do not, then, abandon me, cease not 
to console me in that moment of so great 
affliction. If I am now so tormented by 
remorse for sins committed, the uncer- 
tainty of pardon, the danger of relapse, 
and the rigor of Divine Justice, what will 
become of me then? Unless thou helpest 
me, I shall be lost. Before death obtain 
me great sorrow for my sins, thorough 
amendment, and fidelity to God during 
the remainder of my life. And when my 
last moment arrives, O Mary, my hope, 
help me in the great distress in which I 
shall then be; encourage me, that I may 
not despair at the sight of my sins, which 
the devil will place before me. Obtain 
that I may then invoke thee more fre- 
quently; so that I may expire with thy 
most sweet name and that of thy beloved 
Son on my lips. Nay, more, my Mother, 
but forgive my boldness, before I expire 
do thou come thyself and comfort me 
with thy presence. Thou hast granted 
this favor to so many of thy devout 
servants, I also desire and hope for it. 
I am a sinner, it is true; I do not deserve 
so great a favor; but 1 am thy servant. 
I love thee and have full confidence in 
thee. O Mary, I shall expect thee; do 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



329 



not deprive me of this consolation. At 
least, if I am not worthyof so great a favor, 
do thou help me from heaven, that I may 
leave this life loving God and thee, to 
love thee eternally in Paradise. 



WEDNESDAY. 

Prayer to the most Blessed Virgin Mary , to 
obtain Deliverance from Hell. 

Beloved Mother, I thank thee for hav- 
ing saved me from hell as many times as 
I have deserved it by my sins. I was 
once condemned to that prison, and per- 
haps already, after the first sin, the sen- 
tence would have been put into execution, 
if thou, in thy compassion, hadst not 
helped me. Without even being asked 
by me, and only in thy goodness, thou 
didst restrain Divine Justice; and then, 
conquering my obduracy, thou didst draw 
me to have confidence in thee. O, into 
how many other sins should I have after- 
wards fallen, in the dangers in which I 
have been, hadst not thou, my loving 
Mother, preserved me by the graces which 
thou didst obtain for me! Ah, my Queen, 
continue to guard me from hell; for what 



330 PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 

will thy mercy, and the favors which 
thou hast shown me, avail me if I am lost? 
If I did not always love thee, now at least 
— after God — I love thee above all things- 
Never allow me to turn my back on thee 
and on God, who, by thy means has grant- 
ed me so many graces. My most amiable 
Mother, never allow me to have the 
misfortune to hate thee and curse thee for 
all eternity in hell. Wilt thou endure to 
see a child of thine, who loves thee, lost? 
1 shall be lost if 1 abandon thee. But how 
can I ever forget the love thou hast borne 
me? My Mother, since thou hast done so 
much to save me, complete the work, con- 
tinue the aid. If at a time when I lived 
forgetful of thee thou didst favor me so 
much, how much more may I not hope for 
n f ow that I love thee and recommend my- 
self to thee! No, he can never be lost 
who recommends himself to thee; he alone 
is lost who has not recourse to thee. Leave 
me not in my own hands, for I should then 
be lost; grant that I may always have 
recourse to thee. Save me, my hope, save 
me from hell; but, in the first place, save 
me from sin, which alone can condemn 
me to it. 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 331 



THURSDAY. 

Prayer to the most Blessed Virgin Mary i to 
obtain Heaven. 

O Queen of Paradise who reignest 
above all the choirs of angels, and who 
art the nearest of all creatures to God, I 
salute thee from this valley of tears, and 
beseech thee to turn thy compassionate 
eyes towards me. See, O Mary, in how 
many dangers I now am, and shall be as 
long as I live in this world, of losing my 
soul, of losing heaven and God. Ah, when 
will be that happy day on which I shall 
see myself safe at thy feet, and contem- 
plate my Mother, who has done so much 
for my salvation ? When shall I kiss that 
hand which has delivered me so many 
times from hell, and has dispensed me so 
many graces, when, on account of my sins, 
I deserved to be hated and abandoned by 
all ? My Lady, in life 1 have been very un- 
grateful to thee; but il I- get to heaven, I 
shall no longer be ungrateful: there J 
shall love thee as much as I can in every 
moment for all eternity, and shall make 
amends for my ingratitude by blessing 
and thanking thee for ever. I thank God 
with my whole heart, who gives me firm 
confidence in the blood of fesus Christ 



332 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



and in thee, and in the conviction that 
thou wilt save me; that thou wilt deliver 
me from my sins; that thou wilt give me 
light and strength to execute the Divine 
Will; and, in fine, that thou wilt lead me to 
the gate of Paradise. Thy servants have 
hoped for all this, and not one of them 
was deceived. Beseech thy Son Jesus, as 
1 also beseech Him, by the merits of His 
Passion, to preserve and always increase 
this confidence in me, and I shall be 
saved. 



FRIDAY. 

Prayer to the most Blessed Virgin Mary, to 
obtain Love towards her and Jesus Christ. 

O Mary, I already know that thou art 
the most noble, the most pure, the most 
beautiful, the most benign, the most 
holy — in a word, the most amiable of all 
creatures. O that all knew thee, my Lady, 
and loved thee as thou dost merit! But I 
amconsoled when Iremember that in heav- 
en and on earth there are so many happy 
souls who live enamoured of thy goodness 
and beauty. Above all, I rejoice that God 
Himself loves thee alone more than He 
loves all men and angels together. My 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 333 

most amiable Queen, 1, a miserable sinner, 
love thee also; but I love thee too little* 
I desire a greater and more tender love to- 
wards thee; and this thou must obtain 
for me, since to love thee is a great mark 
of predestination, and a grace which God 
only grants to those whom He will save. 

I see also, my Mother, that I am indeed 
under great obligations to thy Son. I see 
that He merits infinite love. Thou, who 
desirest nothing else but to see Him 
loved, hast to obtain me this grace 
above all others; obtain me great love for 
Jesus Christ. Thou obtainest all that thou 
wiliest from God; ah, then, be graciously 
pleased to obtain me the grace to be so 
united to the Divine Will that I may never 
more be separated from it. I do not ask 
of thee earthly goods, honors, or riches. 
I ask thee for that which thy heart desires 
most for me. I wish to love my God. 
Is it possible that thou refusest to second 
this, my desire, which is so pleasing to 
thee? Ah no, thou already helpest me; 
already thou prayest for me. Pray, pray, 
and cease not to pray until thou seest 
me safe in heaven, beyond the possibil- 
ity of ever more losing my Lord, and cer- 
tain to love Him for ever, together with 
thee, my dearest Mother. 



334 PR A YERS TO OUR LADY. 

SATURDAY. 

Most holy Virgin Mary, Mother of God, 
I., N., although most unworthy to be thy 
servant, yet moved by thy wonderful 
compassion, and by my desire to serve 
thee, now choose thee, in presence of my 
guardian angel and of the whole celestial 
court, for my especial Patroness and 
Advocate, and I firmly purpose always to 
love and serve thee for the future, and to 
do whatever I can to induce others to love 
and serve thee also. I beseech thee, O 
Mother of God, and my most compassion- 
ate and loving Mother, by the blood which 
thy Son shed for me, to receive me into the 
number of thy servants, to be thy child 
and servant forever. Assist me in all 
my thoughts, words, and actions, in every 
moment of my life, so that every step that 
I take, and every breath that I draw, may 
be directed to the greater glory of my 
God, and through thy most powerful in- 
tercession, may I never more offend my 
beloved Jesus, but may I glorify Him, and 
love Him in this life, and love thee, my 
most beloved and dear Mother, and thus 
love thee and enjoy thee in heaven for all 
eternity. Amen. 

My Mother Mary, I recommend my 



PRAYERS TO OUR I A DY. 335 

soul to thee, and especially at the hour of 
my death. 



Prayer of Saint Thomas Aquinas, 

O most blessed and most sweet Virgin 
Mary, full of mercy, to thy compassion 
I recommend my soul and body, my 
thoughts, actions, life, and death. O my 
Lady, help and strengthen me against the 
snares of the devil; obtain me true and per- 
fect love, with which to love thy most 
beloved Son and my Lord Jesus Christ 
with my whole heart, and after Him to 
love thee above all things. My Queen 
and Mother, by thy most powerful inter- 
cession, grant that I may persevere in this 
love until death, and after death be con- 
ducted by thee to the kingdom of the 
blessed. 



LITANY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. 

Lord, have mercy on us. 

Christ, have mercy on 21s. 
Lord, have mercy on us. 
Christ, hear us. 
Christ .graciously hear us. 
God, the Father of heaven, have inercy 
on us. 



336 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, 

have mercy on us. 

God. the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us. 

Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on 
us. 

Holy Mary, 
Holy Mother of God, 
Holy Virgin of virgins, 
Mother of Christ, 
Mother of divine grace, 
Mother most pure, 
Mother most chaste, 
Mother undefiled, 
Mother inviolate, 
Mother most amiable, 
Mother most admirable, 
Mother of our Creator, 
Mother of our Redeemer, 
Virgin most prudent, 
Virgin most venerable, 
Virgin most renowned, 
Virgin most powerful, 
Virgin most merciful, 
Virgin most faithful, 
Mirror of justice, 
Seat of wisdom, 
Cause of our joy, 
Spiritual vessel, 
Vessel of honor, 
Vessel of singular devotion, 
Mystical rose, 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



337 



Tower of David, 
Tower of ivory, 
House of gold, 
Ark of the covenant, 
Gate of heaven, 
Morning star, 
Health of the weak, 
Refuge of sinners, 
Com fortress of the afflicted, 
Help of Christians, J 
Queen of angels, 
Queen of patriarchs, 
Queen of prophets, 
Queen of apostles, 
Queen of martyrs, 
Queen of confessors, 
Queen of virgins, 
Queen of all saints, 
Queen conceived without original 
sin, 

Queen of the most holy Rosary, 

Lamb of God, who takest away the 
sins of the world — Spare us, Lord! 

Lamb of God, who tak'est awa)' the sins 
of the world — Graciously hear us, Lord! 

Lamb of God, who takest away the sins 
of the world — Have mercy on us, Lord. 

V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God. 

R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 



338 



PRAYERS 10 OUR LADY. 



Let us pray. 

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, 
Thy grace into our hearts, that we, to 
whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son 
was made known by the message of an 
angel, may, by His passion and cross, be 
brought to the glory of His resurrec- 
tion, through the same Christ our Lord. 
Amen. 



LITANY OF OUR BLESSED LADY OF 

VICTORY. 
Lord, have mercy on us. 
Christ, have mercy on us. 
Lord, have mercy on us. 
Christ, hear us. 
Christ, graciously hear us. 
God, the Father of heaven, have mercy an us. 
God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, have 

mercy on us. 
God, the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us. 
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us. 
Our Lady of Victory, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant Daughter 

of the Father, 
Our Lady of Victory, triumphant Mother of 

the Son, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant Spouse of 
the Holy Ghost, 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 339 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant choice oF 
the Most Holy Trinity, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy Im- 
maculate Conception, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in crushing 
the head of the serpent, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant over all 
the children of Adam, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant over all 
our enemies, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the em- 
bassy of the Angel Gabriel, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy 
espousal with St. Joseph, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant at the scene 
of Bethlehem, ^ 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy 
flight into Egypt, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy 
exile, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy 

humble dwelling at Nazareth, 
Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in finding 

thy Divine Child in the temple, 
Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the 

earthly life of Our Lord, 
Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in His 

Passion and Death, 
Our Lady of Victory, tiiumphant in the 

Resurrection, 
Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the 

Ascension, 



340 



PR A YERS TO OUR LADY. 



Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the " 
descent of the Holy Ghost, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy sor- 
rows, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy joys, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy en- 
trance into the heavenly Jerusalem, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the 
angeis who remained faithful, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the fe- 
licity of the blessed, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the 
graces of the just, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the an- 
nouncement of the prophets, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the de- y 
sires of the patriarchs, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the zeal 
of the apostles, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the light 
of the evangelists, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the wis- 
dom of the doctors, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the 
crowns of the confessors, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the 
purity of the numerous bands of vir- 
gins, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in the tri- 
umphs of the martyrs, 

Our Lady of Victory, triumphant in thy all- 
powerful intercession, J 



PRAYERS TO OUR LADY. 



341 



Our Lady of Victory, triumphant under thy 1 



Our Lady of Victory, triumphant at the hour f 5' 

of our death, J >. 

Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the 

world. Spare us, O Lord. 
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the 

world, Graciously hear us, O Lord, 
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the 

world, Have mercy on its. 
V . Pray for us. O Blessed Lady of Victory ! 
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises 

of Christ. 



O Victorious Lady ! thou who hast ever such 
powerful influence with thy Divine Son in con- 
quering the hardest of hearts, intercede for those 
for whom we pray, that their hearts being softened 
by the rays of Divine grace, they may return 
to the unity of the true Fath, through Christ 
our Lord. Amen. 



Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, 
our sweetness, and our hope. 

To thee do we cry, poor banished children of 
Eve. To thee do we send up our sighs, mourn- 
ing and weeping in this valley of tears. 

Turn, then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes 
of mercy towards us, 

And after this, our exile, show unto us the 



many titles, 




Let us pray. 



SALVE REGIXA. 



B42 PRAYERS TO OUR /ADV. 



blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. 

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. 

Pray for us O holy Mother of God : 

That we may be made worthy of the promises 

of Christ. 

MEMORARE. 

R.emember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, 
that never was it known that any one who fled 
to thy protection, implored thy help, and sought 
thy intercession, was left unaided. Inspired with 
this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of vir- 
gins, my Mother. To thee I come; before thee I 
stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the 
Word Incarnate! despise not my petitions but, 
in thy mercy, hear and answer me. Amen. 



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